Perception
by supermandy77
Summary: AU-New reporter Clark Kent thought he knew all the important details about his new partner, Lois Lane. But it's what he didn't know that intrigues him.
1. Chapter 1 Meetings

As he walked into the bullpen of the Daily Planet, Clark wasn't sure if he wanted to hug or strangle Chloe. Sure, she'd talked to some of the contacts she still had in Metropolis and gotten him the interview that turned into his first job after graduating from Metropolis University, but he was fairly certain that she was exaggerating just how welcoming these people would be to a new guy with minimal experience bypassing a stint in the basement. He appreciated the confidence his best friend had in him, but that confidence now felt wasted as he walked into what appeared to be nothing short of a madhouse.

"Lois, Perry's on a rampage," he heard a woman call as he stood in the doorway. "I have very specific instructions to not let you leave this building until you give him a good excuse for missing your third staff meeting in a row."

He watched as the subject of the conversation finally came into view. So…this was Chloe's cousin, Lois. Chloe wasn't kidding when he described her as a spitfire. He leisurely walked toward her as she barreled through the bullpen. She was muttering obscenities and apparently looking for something in her desk. "He knows damn well what I'm going to tell him, Maria," she yelled. "I haven't the slightest idea why he even bothers asking anymore."

That was definitely her. He again contemplated strangling his best friend before finally stepping forward to his new partner's desk. "Uh, Lois? Lois Lane?"

Lois whipped around and almost ran into him, not realizing how close he was to her. She quickly scanned the man standing in front of her before becoming instantly skeptical of his presence. "The one and only. What do you want?" she asked before turning around and continuing to rummage through her drawers. "I have to meet with my editor and I can't find a pen for the life of me."

"Clark Kent," he said, reaching out his right hand. "I'm your new partner."

Lois found a pen and gave a big "A ha!" just as he said those words. She turned back to him and made a big show of letting out a large sigh. Her expression quickly changed from shock to snarky as she put her hands on her hips. "You are, are you?" He nodded. "Well in that case, you're coming with me." She grabbed him by the wrist, effectively forcing him to follow her to what he presumed was Mr. White's office.

They entered the Editor-in-Chief's office like a whirlwind, causing Perry White to turn his head in surprise. "Lois…Clark. I see you've met each other."

"Yeah, about that Perry. I told you I didn't want—or need—a partner. I have enough on my plate right now without having to train some kid from Corn Town USA."

Perry opened his mouth to speak but was cut off when Clark stepped forward. "Mr. White, if you don't mind," he said, gesturing toward Lois and then turning to face her. "First of all, Lois, I'm not a kid. I'm 26, a fact you should have checked before you ran your mouth. And furthermore, I may be from Smallville, but I graduated from Met U and spent my last semester interning at the _Gotham Gazette_, so I'm not as green as you make me out to be." He turned back toward his boss and sighed. "I thought Mad Dog Lane would have done her research."

Perry smirked and shifted his eyes from Clark to Lois. She was seething, and having a hard time formulating a comeback. "And you're right, Lois," Perry added, "you _do_ have plenty on your plate right now. Consider this my way of helping you lighten the load."

"I've got it under control, Perry."

The editor walked around his desk and stood in front of her. When he spoke to her again, it was more like a father speaking to a child than a boss to an employee. "I know that and you know that, Lois, but there are people out there who don't know the whole story and will try to capitalize on their own ignorance. I know for a fact you don't want that."

Clark could sense that his presence was the reason for their elusiveness. He did his best to stand in the background until he finally heard Lois mutter an agreement.

"Good," Perry told her. "Get Kent up to date on the Intergang piece you're working on and then I want him fully ensconced in it as soon as possible. Wherever you go, he goes."

"But Chief-"

"No buts, Lois. Sometimes you have to compromise to keep the things in life you love the most." He turned without another word and sat back down behind his desk. "Kent, you can learn a great deal from Lois, but don't let her push you around too much. That nickname of hers usually has people cowering for no good reason."

"Thanks, Mr. White. I'll keep that in mind."

Clark followed Lois out of the editor's office and back to their section of the bullpen. He now had four different impressions of Lois—from Chloe, Mr. White, the public perception, and himself—and they were all different. He knew, of course, that she was quickly becoming one of the most respected investigative reporters in the country. On more than one occasion during his internship, he heard different people at the Gazette talking about how management was trying to lure her from the Planet. She obviously didn't buy what they were selling.

What he heard from Chloe was a completely different story. He heard about Lois being an Army brat and how she had a penchant for upsetting her father, a three-star general. His best friend had also told her how much fun they had during some of their summer vacations together, even though Lois was at a different base every couple years. Most of all, he remembered Chloe vowing that she would go anywhere and do anything for her cousin—no questions asked.

He recalled the look on Mr. White's face when he stood up to Lois a few minutes ago, as well as his statement about Lois and how her bark was worse than her bite. He remembered the editor telling Lois that the partnership with Lois was a way of lightening her load. The look that crossed her face in that moment was one he thought—in his limited knowledge—Lois was incapable of. Because, really? He was supposed to be standing next to Lois "Mad Dog" Lane, and yet, she was standing there in the Editor-in-Chief's office looking, if only for a split second, like she could break down and cry. But then, her features glossed over just as quickly and she went about her day, signaling for him to follow her back into the bullpen and get to work.

"Okay, Smallville. This is the file of research for the Intergang piece," Lois said as they returned to the bullpen and their desks. She pulled out a manila folder that was bursting at its seams and laid it on the desk in front of him as he sat down and made himself comfortable. He could tell immediately that he was in for a long day. "It's 9:15 now. Lunch is at noon and then I have a meeting with a source at one. Think you can get yourself caught up by then?"

He nodded and opened the folder, amazed at the detail he found. From the look of it, this was a story Lois had been working on for some time; some of the information went as far back as eight months ago. A newspaper clipping announced the release of Bruno Mannheim from prison. Phrases and sources within the article were highlighted, along with what appeared to be initials next to them and notes like "_are you kidding me?" _and "_DH says otherwise" _in the margins.

Almost two hours later he stretched his legs and stood up, feeling confident that he could finish the file in another 45 minutes. But right now, he needed a cup of coffee. "Need a refill, Lois? I have to get up and walk for a minute so I can digest all this information."

Lois looked up in surprise. "You're done already?"

"Almost. But like I said, I need a break before my eyes bug out. How do you like your coffee?"

"Cream and two sugars. Thanks, Smallville."

Clark walked into the employee lounge and grabbed a couple cups. He poured them each some coffee and started to doctor Lois's while he glanced back at her through the window. She had told him she was preparing for their source meeting after lunch, and he could see the concentration in her face as she twirled the pen in her hand. At that moment, it was hard for him to imagine her as Chloe's carefree cousin.

Right now, his impression of her was a big amalgam of all the different versions of her. He started walking across the bullpen and watched as she answered her phone. What appeared to start off as a normal conversation was the exact opposite by the time he set the coffee down inconspicuously on her desk.

"For the last time, David," she almost yelled into the phone, "I'm not going to agree to that…No…yeah, well I'd like to see you try." She slammed her pen down on the desk and stood up. "I don't know how many times I have to tell you that it's under control…No, you don't have to remind me; I have the scars as reminders, thank you…Court, huh? Thanks for the warning."

She slammed the phone down into its cradle and ran her hands through her hair before focusing her eyes on Clark.

"Sorry you had to hear that. He always manages to get me riled up," she told him, breathing out heavily and then reaching for the coffee Clark brought her.

"Husband?"

"In a past lifetime, yes. Now he's just a consistent pain in my ass."

"I'm sorry, Lois."

Her head jerked in his direction. "Why are you sorry? I'm pretty sure you're not the one who gave him this smug sense of superiority."

"Sorry. I-"

"See, there you go again. Stop apologizing. I've been dealing with the guy just fine for almost seven years now. I don't need your sympathy."

Clark watched as she sat down at her desk and made a good show of getting back to work. She almost had him convinced until she started poking and beating her keyboard almost maniacally until she finally let out a small scream and pushed her chair away from her desk.

"Everything ok, Lois?"

"You done with that file yet?" He nodded. "Good. Small change of plans. I need to make a pit stop before that meeting this afternoon, and since you're my partner now, I guess you get to come along for the ride." She stormed toward the exit, turning around when she was almost halfway on the other side of the bullpen. Clark hadn't moved, still shocked by her outburst. "Well, come on, Smallville. We're on a time crunch here."

What else could he do but get up and follow her?

Twenty minutes later Clark found himself following Lois into Bayside Daycare in Park Ridge, a borough of Metropolis. About a million questions flooded his mind before Lois stopped him right outside the door and looked him straight in the eye. "Look, I know you're going to have all kinds of questions. But please, for me, just hang back and let me have a few minutes. I'll explain at lunch."

Clark nodded and followed her through the door, not sure what he was going to find. He listened as Lois spoke to the woman at the front counter as if they were well-acquainted, and then once again followed as they went into a playroom. A short time later, a boy of about five ran in from outside and launched himself into Lois's waiting arms.

"How's my baby boy?" she asked as she held tightly to him.

"Did you come for lunch, Mommy?" he queried as he looked into her face. He was like a miniature Lois, with dark, wavy brown hair and brown eyes to match.

"I'm sorry, DJ. I wish I could but Mommy's got a meeting this afternoon. But I had a few extra minutes so I wanted to stop in and see how you were doing."

He held out his arms triumphantly. "It's almost gone! That pink stuff's working." Lois quickly examined his arms, then gave his legs a once over. "Mommy? Who's that guy?" he asked, pointing in Clark's direction.

Clark was doing his best to remain like a fly on the wall, but he quickly realized that this boy was definitely Lois's son. He watched as she looked over to him contemplatively, as if she was trying to decide how to explain his presence.

"Oh," she started, walking slowly in his direction. She put her son down so he could walk with her, grabbed his hand, and cautiously came to stand in front of him. "DJ, this is Clark. He's my new partner at the newspaper. Clark, this is…my son, DJ."

Clark noticed the hesitancy in her voice, but shook it off as he knelt down so he didn't tower over the young boy so much. DJ smiled at him, so he smiled in return, quickly glanced up at Lois, and extended his hand. "Hello, DJ. It's nice to meet you."

DJ took Clark's hand and shook it, a smile adorning his face almost immediately. "Mommy doesn't like partners. She says they slow her down."

Lois laughed nervously and knelt down so she was at the same level as Clark and her son. "Honey, I don't—"

"Lois, it's okay. He's being honest," Clark said, cutting her off.

"Brutally honest. I'm afraid that's not the best quality he got from me."

"It's not the worst, either." He smiled at her then turned his attention back to DJ. "Tell you what, DJ. I'll do my best to keep up with your mom. Maybe I can make her change her mind about partners."

Lois laughed, almost silently, and then leaned in to whisper something in DJ's ear. He looked at her questioningly and she gave him the motion to go ahead. "Mommy says 'fat chance.' She's just as…" he looked back to his mother and she whispered in his ear again. "…stub-born as Grandpa Sam."

Clark laughed. He'd heard stories from Chloe about her uncle Sam's legendary stubborn streak. He turned to Lois to see her smirking and looking quite satisfied that she was using her son to make him look incompetent. "Thanks for the warning, buddy. But I think I'll take my chances."

There was a lull in the conversation, and Lois quickly looked at her watch. "Ok, kiddo. Mommy has to go. I'll be back to get you later." She hugged him tightly then took a good look at him. "I love you."

"Love you too, Mommy. Can I go play now?"

She smiled softly and stood up. "Yeah, you can go play. Be good."

DJ ran off toward the door and out to the playground, leaving Lois standing in the playroom with Clark. He glanced over to her, being careful not to rush her. She was still rooted to the spot, not taking her eyes off her son. Then all at once, she snapped out of it.

"Ready to go, Smallville? I'm starving and I have a feeling I'm going to need a great deal of nourishment to get through this day."

"Yeah," he said quietly, watching as she shifted from mother back into the role of hardnosed investigative reporter. He noticed that it was almost like she was flipping a switch. Not only did she have an ex-husband, but also a young son that—as far as he could tell—was just like his mother. But he would have never guessed any of that upon meeting her this morning. It was as if she had very neatly compartmentalized all these different aspects of her life so that they didn't interact and get in the way of the other parts.

Clark followed her out to the car and marveled at how she could turn motherhood on and off like she did. She was walking across the parking lot with purpose, bound and determined to get out of there as soon as possible.

"Great kid you've got there, Lois," he almost yelled in a desperate attempt to get her to slow down, even if it was just for a moment.

"Yeah, well he unfortunately is a great deal like his mother." She hardly missed a beat, continuing to walk toward her car.

"I wouldn't say it's unfortunate. Just…interesting. It's like when your parents say they can't wait for you to be a parent so you'll understand what they had to deal with."

Lois almost wrenched the car door open before she answered him. She had a look in her eye that almost frightened him, one that said he should drop the subject before she ripped his eyes out with her finger nails. "Listen. I don't advertise to the world that I have a son. Most people don't even know that I was married, let alone got a divorce. I keep my work life and my home life separate because it's necessary." She paused as they got in the car and she started it. She pulled onto the street before she spoke again. "The irony of the whole thing is that doing so put me in the pickle I'm in now."

"Sounds like I have quite a bit to learn."

"You don't know the half of it, Smallville."


	2. Chapter 2: Cutting the Mustard

**Chapter 2**

The car ride back from their meeting with Lois's source was tense from the moment they left the docks. Clark could tell that Lois was seething over her lack of headway with a guy who was supposed to know a great deal on the increase of Intergang activity since the release of Bruno Mannheim. And now, they were stuck in traffic.

"I'm sorry I wasn't more help back there, Lois. I could use some more time to really dig into that file." His voice was apprehensive, not knowing exactly what kind of mood she was in. He honestly couldn't tell. His only clue was the consistent tapping of her fingers on the steering wheel.

"Again with the apologizing, Smallville. I can't expect you to walk into that interview and be much help when you had less than three hours notice and were only given the information this morning. I've been working on this story on and off for almost a year, trying to figure out what these people are up to this time around. Never mind that it's taken me almost two months to get Bibbo to even give me the time of day, let alone sit down and talk with me about what he's seen."

"Regardless, I need to pull my weight in this partnership. I don't want to give you any reason to go to Mr. White and tell him I'm not cutting the mustard."

"Okay, first of all, what the hell kind of saying is 'cutting the mustard?' Is that a Smallville thing? Because if it is, I should go to Perry right now and demand that he fire you."

"On what grounds?"

"Oh, please. You've spent more than three years going to school in Metropolis and a semester in Gotham City and you still say things like 'cutting the mustard.' I would think the reason would be obvious."

"Excuse me if I don't quite have the world view you have, Lois. Twenty-two year habits are hard to break."

Lois turned back to the road, renewing her frustration with the lack of movement among the traffic. When she turned back to Clark, she was calmer and teetering on the edge what Clark already recognized as 'reporter mode.'

"So…Clark. You're 26 and just now graduating from Met U. How does that work?"

He knew the question was coming eventually, but it still didn't help him be more prepared to answer. The events that made his life follow down this path happened almost ten years ago, but they still stung. "I enrolled at Central Kansas after high school, but hadn't formally declared a major. And honestly, I can't say it would have been journalism at the time." He took a moment before continuing. "Toward the end of the first semester—on election night to be exact—my dad died of a heart attack. He'd just won a seat on the Kansas State Senate not an hour earlier."

Lois suddenly remembered where she'd heard the name Kent before. "Hey, your dad was Jonathan Kent?"

Clark simply nodded.

"The first time I ever voted, I voted for your dad." She thought for a moment. "So, that makes Martha Kent your Mom then, doesn't it? She took your dad's seat in the Senate."

"Yeah. It took some convincing, but in the end I think it helped her. Anyway, when Dad died and Mom took his place on the Senate, my help was needed even more on the farm. I dropped out of school and spent the next few years keeping the farm going while Mom spent most of her time in Topeka."

"So what made you –?"

"Go back to school? After Mom's first term, she made the decision to sell the farm. She could tell that I wasn't happy being a farmer, and it was difficult for her to come back to all the memories. She felt that it would be best for us both to move on with our lives. She sold the farm and paid for my education."

The conversation stalled, just like the traffic. It was 30 minutes later—as they were walking through the parking garage under the Planet—before Lois spoke again. "I can't believe my new partner is the son of Senator Kent. Everything makes more sense now."

Clark took a few long strides and stopped her in her tracks. He glared down at her, even though she was wearing heels, and pointed his finger at her in anger. "Listen, I did _not_ get this job by throwing around my mother's name."

"Calm down, Smallville. It wouldn't be the first—or the last—time someone positioned themselves to get some good publicity."

He was really angry now. How could she believe that the only reason he was here was because of his mother? She had a point, of course. Many people, senators mostly, found a way to position a relative or friend of some sort in a position that would help them gain good publicity. But, what Lois had failed to see up to this point was that he would _never_ use his mother's position for his own personal gain. For that matter, he would never use his position to make his mother look better. Simply put, his mother didn't need his help. She did fine all on her own.

Lois pushed past him and got in the elevator with Clark following close behind her. As they traveled to the 25th floor of the building, he realized that he couldn't let her go on believing that he had ulterior motives in taking his job. "Lois, if you voted for my father, then I presume you know what he stood for, right?" He glanced over and watched as she turned toward him slightly with interest in her eyes. "Well, my mom has those same ideals, and my parents made sure they instilled them in me as well. And frankly, Mom doesn't need help getting positive press. The fact that she is already heavily favored to win her third term should say plenty about that claim."

"Point taken," she replied, turning fully toward him and leaning gently against the elevator wall as they continued their ascent. "But can you honestly say that you never once did a little name dropping when you applied for this job?"

"Lois, if I was going to name drop to get a job, why would I have any reason to take a semester-long internship in Gotham City?"

"The scenic view from the Bay?"

Clark laughed, knowing for a fact that, if anything, the view from the Bay was a compelling reason to run in the opposite direction. "Yeah, it's right up there with the top-notch welcoming committee. Although, you're making them look like my mom's assistant at the Capitol with the third degree you're giving me right now."

Lois returned the laugh as the doors to the elevator opened and they made their way back to their desks. "Sorry, Smallville, but I had to get the dirt if your name was going to be under mine in print. Didn't want any surprises, you know."

"Yeah, I get it. So does that mean I get to return the favor tomorrow? I have a hunch that I got the Cliff's Notes version earlier today."

"Caught that, did you? You just might have something there, Kent." She gathered a few things and looked at the clock on the wall, sighing deeply as she did so. "Listen, I have to high-tail it back to Park Ridge to pick up DJ. But if you want to come over later—say 7:30 or 8—I can go over that file with you and bring you up to speed."

"Sure."

"Well then, I'm at 1705 Ritz Plaza Apartments. I'll be sure to let Benny the doorman know that you're coming." She gathered the rest of her belongings and headed for the door. "Sorry I have to hurry off like this, but—"

"One day and already I have you apologizing for everything. Go, Lois. I'll see you later."

He sat down in his chair as she retreated back into the elevator. The idea of going through the small bits of information they got earlier crossed his mind, but he couldn't take his mind off Lois. She certainly wasn't what he expected. But then again, she was. The fact of the matter was that she was more complicated than he ever imagined. What exactly that meant, he didn't know at this point.

Clark got to the door and raised his hand to knock just before he heard the voices. He recognized one as Lois, and the other he presumed was her ex-husband, judging by the type of argument they were having.

"For the last time," she yelled, "I was perfectly safe down there today. I wasn't alone, it was the middle of the day, and we were in a public place with tons of people around. And I was just doing a simple interview. It wasn't like I was trying to infiltrate Fort Knox on lockdown."

"I don't care, Lois," the other voice replied. "You know how I feel about you going after Intergang, especially with all the noise they've been making recently. I don't want our little boy growing up without his mother, especially because she was more concerned about getting a Pulitzer than making sure he was picked up from daycare in a timely manner. The director said this was the fifth time this month you were more than fifteen minutes late."

Clark contemplated leaving and calling her later to apologize for not making it. She was having a private conversation and he had no business listening, even if they could be heard all the way down the hallway. But when he rationalized it in his mind, he came to the conclusion that he could offer her some backup in this particular situation. _He_ was her partner, her backup, and he was able to confirm that the traffic was so bad today (because of a bad accident on the Avenue of Tomorrow) that they were late getting back to the office from the interview. Before he realized what he was doing, he knocked on the door and waited for her to answer.

She apparently didn't want to stop fighting just because she had to answer the door. "There was an accident, David. And before you even say it, I had nothing—"

Lois stopped in surprise upon seeing Clark on the other side of the door. The look of shock disappeared quickly. "Clark…hi. I forgot you were coming over." She moved to the side and let him inside her apartment.

"If this is a bad time I can…"

"No, it's ok. I just need a couple of minutes."

"And now, on top of everything else, you have strange men coming over while my son is here."

Clark looked up, and saw Lois's ex-husband standing at the end of the hallway, looking incredibly pissed.

"_Our_ son, David," Lois quickly corrected. "Or did you forget that I was the one was in labor for 20 hours?" She looked between the two men who stood in her hallway and braced herself for what she could only assume was going to be the beginning of a tense relationship. "David, this is Clark Kent. He's my new partner at the Planet." Clark extended his hand and she couldn't help but smile briefly. "Clark, this is David Vega, my ex-husband and DJ's father."

"It's nice to meet you, David." Clark shook his hand and chose his next words carefully. "I don't mean to intrude on your conversation, but…I was with Lois today. She didn't do anything to put herself in danger. And as for her being late to pick up DJ…well, there was a bad accident on the Avenue of Tomorrow when we were trying to get back to the Planet. It wasn't something she could really control."

David smiled and looked down to where he was still shaking Clark's hand. When he looked back up, his gaze shifted to Lois before he made his way to the door. "Kudos, Lois. You have him trained already." He opened the door and looked back at her as he stood in the open doorway. "Think about what I said, Lois. This isn't going away."

The shutting of the door triggered an emotional response from Lois. She walked purposefully to the door, and with all the force she could muster, punched it and yelled an expletive Clark was sure she made up on her own. She immediately grabbed her hand and yelped in pain, retreating into the kitchen.

He followed her cautiously, unsure what kind of mood she was going to be in after the latest altercation with her ex. She had the freezer door opened, and he watched as she unsuccessfully tried to put together an icepack for her injured hand.

"Lois, here, let me help," he whispered gently, walking over to her and taking a moment to examine her injured hand. He spread her palm out over hop of his hand, looking at the red knuckles that were already starting to swell slightly on her right hand. "In the future, don't lead with your knuckles." He helped her make a fist and watched her face as she winced only slightly. "I don't think anything's broken, but they're going to be sore for a few days."

Clark pulled an ice pack out of her freezer, put it in the towel she held out for him, and wrapped the ice pack carefully in the towel and handed it to her. She motioned to the kitchen table, where the filed they needed were already laid out, and they sat down without another word.

The silence spread out between them, each of them not knowing how to move on from the scene that signaled his arrival, as well as everything that happened beforehand. In the end, Lois was the one to break the silence. "Clark, I'm sorry. You must think I'm the worst mother ever, and…"

He watched her, the emotion in her eyes being so strong that he thought she might break down and cry. It was so strong that he wouldn't—couldn't—look her in the eye. "Lois, you don't owe me any apologies or explanations. I don't think knowing you for one day gives me the right to judge and make presumptions about your life." He saw her smile in relief, so he decided to lighten the mood. "I'll wait at least a week before I start doing any of that…give or take a few days."

She laughed, and for the first time he caught a glimpse of the fun person his best friend had told him about endlessly. "Thanks, Smallville. I'll do the same."

"I'm going to assume you're not counting the third degree in the parking lot earlier," he said, a slight smile on his face.

"Of course not." She smiled back. "As of right now, I give you a week before I start making fun of you and poking fun at your expense.

"Fair enough." Clark agreed. Despite the mood of the apartment when he arrived, he felt like they had finally moved past that for the evening and they could get on with the reason he was there in the first place. He pulled out the folder Lois gave him earlier in the day and turned to a particular piece that caught his attention and showed it to Lois. "So…I think I'm close to being caught up, but I need some explanation of these notes in the margins."

"Oh," she said. "I needed more information before I ran with certain aspects of the story. I wrote what I had and gave it to Perry, but then I made sure to note where I had purposely left information out, knowing there was more to the story I couldn't prove yet."

"You don't believe that Mannheim is on the up and up then?" He pointed to the place where she had written _are you kidding me?_ and looked at her inquisitively.

"Perry asked me to interview him right after his release from jail. Mannheim's always had a way of keeping the MPD in the dark for months, so there was no way I was going to fall for it this time. I did what Perry asked and did the interview and wrote the story that was asked of me at the time. But, I wasn't going to let him off the hook that easily."

"This guy we went to see today—Bibbo—what does he have to do with this?"

"Well, it's not so much that he's directly involved, but that he sees these guys on a regular basis. His bar, the Ace O' Clubs, is the primary hangout for these slobs from Intergang. He's the perfect fly on the wall, but he's been very apprehensive about getting involved. Bibbo just wants to go about his business, which is selling alcohol. He might also be a little afraid of what these guys would do if they knew I was snooping around, which is why it took so long for him to agree to meet me."

Clark took in the information, knowing that she might in fact be on to something. "He knows something. A guy who doesn't know anything doesn't look as nervous as he looked this afternoon."

"I know. He was also scared that someone would recognize us while we were talking to him, which was why he clammed up like he did."

"Lois, do you have any idea what they're doing? I've seen all kinds of speculation in here, but so far there's nothing concrete about them actually doing anything illegal."

His new partner sat back and ran her hands slowly over her face. He noticed as her eyes darted to what he presumed was DJ's bedroom before she answered his question. "I suppose you need to know this." She got up and went into another room, returning a few minutes later with another folder. "I shouldn't keep this here, but I haven't found a better place for it yet."

Clark looked in the folder, his gaze shifting from the contents to the look on Lois's face. The folder contained four pictures, all of them containing Bruno Mannheim talking to another man. He recognized the setting for the meeting as the docks they were on earlier today. The time stamps on the pictures were different dates, each in the last month, from about the same time of day. "Who's the guy with Mannheim?"

"My father-in-law. United States Senator Michael Vega."


	3. Chapter 3: I Owe You One

**Author's Note: **I need to make a couple clarifications that I failed to do in the first couple chapters. This is an AU. Clark doesn't have any powers. He's not from Krypton, which means that he didn't have powers at one time and then lost them. He is, however, still adopted. And I'm trying to keep as much of his back story the same as possible. There are going to be deviations. One of them is coming up next chapter. And it's a big one.

Anyway, I hope everyone is enjoying the story. It was a suggestion by **The Bloody Countess** on DI.

**Chapter 3: I Owe You One  
**

_three weeks later…_

Lois moved frantically through her apartment, looking for the match to the shoe that was currently on her son's left foot. She took a brief glance at her watch and realized she roughly had about an hour to get DJ to daycare and get herself back to the Daily Planet before Perry got on her case for missing yet another staff meeting.

"Any luck, honey?" she yelled, hoping desperately that a look under the bed had been successful. She supposed that if it was _absolutely_ necessary, she could call Clark and ask him to cover for her, but the last thing she wanted to do was put him in the position of making excuses for her. He did enough of that already.

DJ came running into the room, thankfully with two matching shoes on his feet. "Found it, Mom."

"Do I even want to know where it was?"

She quickly found that she was talking to herself, as DJ had already taken up the task of getting his lunch out of the refrigerator for the day. He seemed to have a sense that they were running behind, and for that, she was thankful. She grabbed her purse and briefcase, and took DJ's hand as they walked to the elevator and down to her car.

"Is Clark coming over tonight, Mommy?" DJ asked during the drive to Bayside.

Lois knew the answer immediately, but she was hesitant to actually tell him at this point. He was more than likely coming over tonight, just like he had most nights since they were made partners a few weeks ago. Her hesitancy laid in not wanting her son to get too attached to him; nothing good could come of it.

"I think so, honey, but it depends on how the day goes."

"Can he just come over to play? He's fun."

"He might have other plans, DJ," she replied, thankful for the excuse. She had to admit though, that her son was right. On most nights that Clark came over so they could get some additional work done on the story, he had taken time to play with DJ, giving her time to get some chores done around the house.

One night last week, she came out of the kitchen to see the two of them sitting on the floor with their heads together. She had no idea what they were laughing about, but Clark had told her later that DJ had taken it upon himself to share a particularly embarrassing story about Lois trying to bake a cake for his birthday a month earlier.

"Can you ask, Mommy?"

"Not if you're going to embarrass me more," she said, smiling at the rear view mirror at him. He was starting to really lay on the charm toward her, which always made it difficult for her to deny him. His eyes had just a touch of sadness to them, and his bottom lip was more prominent than usual. Simply put, he was in full pout mode. "Daniel James, don't you even start," she answered with her sternest voice as they pulled into the daycare parking lot and walked into the building.

She hated being this way with him, especially since he had no idea just what he was asking. Life was complicated enough right now; the last thing she needed was another person (let alone her handsome new partner) making her life more difficult. Most of the time, she was able to mask her attraction to Clark behind their work, but she was quickly finding that the more and more he was around, the more complicated the situation became. The fact of the matter was that DJ _had_ a father, and though he was consistently a pain in her ass, she knew that David loved their son and tried to spend as much time with him as possible.

They went inside and Lois helped him put everything in his cubby before kneeling down and saying goodbye to him for the day. "Listen, buddy. I'll talk to Clark, but I can't make any promises." He smiled brightly and she continued. "Don't forget that your vacation with your dad starts tomorrow, though. He's picking you up tomorrow, so we'll have to get everything together at some point tonight."

"Okay, Mom."

Lois gave him a hug and a kiss before he went into the playroom. The moment he crossed the threshold, she could tell that he was in a completely different world and that he was now totally focused on playing with his friends.

She still found it hard to believe that her boy would be going to kindergarten in about a month's time, which was a big part of the reason that he was taking an extended vacation with David. The details of their trip weren't something she dwelled too much on, still thoroughly trusting David with the welfare of their son despite their personal differences. She knew they were going to Florida to Disney World (initially at the insistence of DJ), as well as some fishing.

The timing of their vacation together couldn't have come at a better time, though. Investigating her father-in-law's connection to Mannheim wasn't something she could do easily with DJ around and David breathing down her neck. If she asked too many questions, she was sure David would double his efforts to get her to drop the story, and it would have nothing to do with her safety and the welfare of their son.

"How mad is he, Smallville?" Lois asked as she came into the bullpen and saw Clark typing away at his computer. She had to admit, as much as she fought his assignment as her partner, he had proved to offer a fresh perspective to the stories she was working on. She wanted to despise him—to somehow prove him to be inept at his job, but the fact was that he had not only come through for her every time she asked, but also stood up to her whenever she tried to knock him down a couple notches.

"Perry? He's fine. I covered for you and told him you got a last minute call from a source and that you had to meet with him."

"He bought that?"

"Sure, but then he got mad at me for not going with you."

Lois looked up from her desk and frowned. "Clark, I'm sorry. I was running ahead of schedule, and then D—"

"Lois, it's okay. No need to explain."

"Thanks, Smallville. I owe you one." They lapsed into silence and concentrated on their work, each focusing on a specific aspect of the Intergang story. Lois was checking on the activity around the docks, while Clark looked into Senator Vega's recent dealings in Metropolis and the surrounding areas. It had been difficult for her to give up the direct investigation into her ex-father-in-law's involvement with Intergang, but Clark had ultimately convinced her that he would conjure less attention considering Lois's relation to the Senator.

"_Think about it, Lois," he told her. "You need to protect DJ. And as much as you shelter him, Senator Vega knows about him and knows how to get your attention. I know you're hesitant to believe he would ever harm his grandson, but desperate men take desperate action. It's best not to give him a reason."_

She hated to admit how right he was with his warning, but his insight into the situation she found herself in was somewhat calming. And yet, by taking charge of this portion of the investigation he was putting himself in a potentially dangerous situation. It was the main reason she was starting to get apprehensive about him hanging around with DJ so much during the last few weeks.

Clark broke her out of her thoughts a while later. "Can I cash in that favor now?"

"Already? You don't waste any time," Lois replied as she looked up from the short piece she was finishing on the city council's new recycling plan.

"I was wondering if you would let me try to talk to Mr. Bibbowski. You said yourself that he was afraid people would recognize you talking to him. I've been here less than a month; I wouldn't be as recognizable."

He had a point, but Lois wasn't about to let him have _everything_ he was asking for just yet. "I'll make you a deal. "Here's the number to the Ace 'O Clubs," she said, shoving a piece of paper across their desks. "Talk to Bibbo. See if he'll agree to meet you somewhere other than down on the docks, perhaps over at the deli. If he agrees, I'll go with you but let you take the lead."

"Right, Lois. Like you could keep your mouth shut through the whole interview."

"Hey, I admit that it will be difficult not to say anything. But, I also recognize that he's got a very good reason for not wanting to talk to me. And maybe you're right. This might just be a conversation for the boys to have." She grabbed her coffee cup and started to walk toward the other side of the room. "Let me know how it goes, Smallville."

"I can't believe it."

They were in the car an hour later, heading toward a sandwich shop on the edge of New Troy. Somehow, Clark had talked Bibbo into meeting them for lunch away from the docks and the watchful eyes of Intergang goons.

"Believe it," Clark told her while he shifted some papers around from the passenger seat. "The best way to get a guy to open his mouth is to put food in front of him. If I wasn't feeling so generous, I would ask you to pitch in half the cost of his lunch."

Lois smirked, realizing that Clark was a quick study when it came to reading their sources. "I'm the silent partner on this one. You might as well be riding solo."

"Perry seems to think I still need training wheels, though."

She contemplated his response, not sure if that was meant as a compliment. On one hand, she didn't want to be the person Perry called on whenever he needed a reporter trained. But, she was starting to not mind being Clark's 'training wheels,' as he had so eloquently put it. As much as she hated to say it, he was really growing on her, both as a partner and a person.

It was with this thought that she mulled over her next words carefully. She _had_ promised, after all.

"DJ asked this morning if you were coming over tonight."

Clark stopped shifting his papers and looked at her surprisingly. "He did?"

"Yeah, and he almost threw a fit when I suggested that you might have other plans and that it depended on whether or not we had work to do tonight. I had to talk him off the proverbial ledge by promising that I would at least ask."

He looked back down at the stack of papers and started to pile them back in the folder. "Is that something you're okay with? Me coming over, I mean."

She almost said no. The word, in fact, was on the tip of her tongue. Instead, she found herself once again sharing details of her personal life with him. "He's leaving tomorrow for a two week vacation with David. We need to pack and I'd like to spend some time with him."

"Just tell him I was busy, then. You should get to spend time with him tonight, especially since he's going to be gone for a couple weeks."

"Thanks, Smallville." She smiled at him, smiling brighter when she saw that he returned her grin.

"Out of everything Chloe told me about you, I don't remember her ever telling me you were a mother," he tried apprehensively. She glared back at him, not daring to speak. "Please tell me it's not because she didn't know."

"God, Clark. I'm a private person because of my job, not because I'm ashamed of the way my life turned out," Lois barked out, unbelieving that he would even make that assumption about her. Sure, she was careful about whom she endowed with knowledge about her personal life, but she was pretty sure Chloe was well beyond that point. "If it makes you feel any better, Chloe was my maid of honor and is DJ's godmother."

Clark returned his gaze to the papers in his lap, and then stared ahead to the slow-moving traffic. "I didn't mean to—"

"Listen, I think we need to come to an understanding here. You know more about my personal life after three weeks than people I've worked with at the Planet for five years. Sure, part of that is because I _do_ talk to Chloe and she seems to think you're the greatest thing since sliced bread. But I took a leap of faith here, Clark, and it's because I frankly need someone watching my back on this one."

"You're scared about where this is going, aren't you?" Clark asked. He recoiled when she shot a menacing glare in his direction. "Come on, admit it. You're worried about Senator Vega's involvement."

"I'm glad that I have two weeks to do some digging without David shooting warnings at me every five seconds about what a horrible mother I am for pursuing this story about Intergang."

"If you don't mind my asking," Clark said tentatively, "what kind of warnings?"

She stifled a laugh, more out of nervousness than anything. While she always rebuked her ex-husband's claims, a part of her wondered if he was actually right. "He's threatening to fight for custody on grounds that my job is a danger to DJ's welfare."

Out of all the responses she expected from her partner at her revelation, silence was not one of them. He turned away from her, looking out the window opposite the driver's side for what seemed like forever but in reality was a block and a half and almost five minutes. When he finally re-engaged in their conversation, he was pensive and serious.

"If you had to choose—DJ or chasing down a lead that would guarantee a Pulitzer—which one would you choose?"

"Wow, Smallville. They sure do preach 'cutting to the chase,' down on the farm, don't they?"

"Would you rather I make assumptions and concoct half-truths?"

"No," she huffed. Not for the first time, she wondered why it was that he could get to her so easily. But whereas David's jabs were meant to bring her down, Clark seemed to be good at helping her reinforce what she already knew. "DJ's my top priority, Clark. He always has been and he always will be."

She wanted to say more, explain more about why she chased down all these criminals and made them face justice. But she was on the edge right now of letting her personal life get in the way of her job. Hell, they were on their way to an interview! Thankfully, Clark seemed to notice that she wasn't done explaining.

"And?"

"And what?" She said, trying to play dumb.

"There's more, isn't there? There's another reason you do this, another reason you risk your life even though you could make a comfortable living reporting on city council meetings and school reform."

Was it that obvious?

"As much resentment as I hold toward my father, Clark, there's one thing I will always be thankful for: he put himself in harm's way and made sacrifices to make sure the world was a better place for his children. I just want to do the same, minus the military rank and hair cut." She paused at Clark's slight chuckle. "Oh, and the constant moving around the world. I was too young to appreciate it."

She knew she had opened herself up for myriad responses. How did they get to talking about this, anyway? And, for that matter, why weren't they at their destination yet?

Lois was waiting for the moment when Clark split his gut open from laughing so hard at her moment of weakness, but it didn't come. Instead, she chanced a peek over to where he sat next to her in the car, and found him staring into the nothingness of endless cars and buildings passing by at a crawl. "What, no snappy comeback to make me feel like a total and complete idiot?"

Clark's attention diverted back to her. "Why would I, Lois? You have a purpose. That's admirable."

"Not if it results in David taking DJ away from me."

"Well, that's the reason I'm here, to make sure you don't get in over your head and to be your back-up in these kinds of situations. Perry said you needed back-up, and I think he was right. In fact, he was right about a lot of things."

"Like what?"

"Oh, just…stuff."

She wanted desperately to grill him about that statement—and write herself a reminder to yell at Perry later—but they had finally reached the diner. Whatever direction the conversation would have taken was quickly dropped in favor of a guy named Bibbo and deli meat.

DJ wasn't happy when he was told that Clark wasn't coming over that night. Lois made a conscious decision not to tell him that he agreed not to work tonight so that she could spend time with her son; she somehow knew that it wouldn't mean the same thing to DJ as it did to her. Unfortunately, he wasn't buying the whole "he's busy tonight" routine, so he begged and begged to call Clark and talk to him himself until he was convinced that Clark really was busy.

Dejectedly, Lois handed DJ her cell phone after dialing Clark's number. She prayed that Clark would stick with their plan and keep it short. Quickly, she heard him answer _hello_ on the other end. And then, she got to hear her five-year-old son feel his way through the phone conversation.

"Clark? It's DJ."

"_Hey, buddy. Is everything okay?"_

"Yeah, I just wanted to know if you could come over tonight. Mom's ordering pizza from Gi-Gi—" he looked to Lois for help.

"Gio-oh-van-ni's," she whispered into the phone.

"Giovanni's. And I'm leaving tomorrow for two weeks and won't get to see you for a long time."

"_Ah, two weeks isn't that long, DJ. It'll be over before you know it."_

"But can you come over anyway? Please?"

Lois had to admit, he was laying it on thick. But thankfully, Clark wasn't wavering.

"_I wish I could. But my mom is in town tonight and I don't get to see her very often. We're going out to dinner."_

Lois was thankful and sad all at the sad time. Clark seemed to have convinced DJ that he really was busy tonight, but in the process, she saw a look of rejection come over DJ's face. She felt sorry for both of them. It was one thing for her to bend the truth to her son, but it was a whole different situation when other people were doing it for her.

"_Tell you what, though. You have your mom tell me when you get back and I'll come over just to hang out with you. No working."_

"Really?"

"_Yeah, really. I better go, DJ. My mom will be here soon, and I'm pretty sure your mom mentioned something to me today about having to help you pack for your trip."_

"I can pack my own stuff," DJ said, his chest puffing out slightly in that "I'm a big boy" manner.

"_I'm sure you can._" There was a pause where she thought Clark had hung up, and then she heard his voice again. "_DJ, can I talk to your mom for a minute?"_

DJ quickly agreed before handing Lois the phone running off to his bedroom. As her hand lifted the phone to her ear, she wondered why she was suddenly nervous having a short phone conversation with Clark. "Hey," was all she could sputter out.

"_Hey. This was unexpected."_

"I'm sorry, Smallville. He wouldn't let it go until he talked to you himself."

"_It's okay. He's a sweet kid. I don't mind."_

"Is your mom really in town?"

"_No, Lois. That was just my way of saying that I was spending time with my mom, so he should, too. I didn't figure you would want me to come out and tell him you were being sentimental today and insisted we not work tonight because you're going to miss him."_

She was floored. "You didn't have to promise that to him, though."

"_I know I didn't. I wanted to."_

"He won't forget."

"_And I don't expect him to. Not only is he a five-year-old boy, but he's your son. I wouldn't expect anything less."_

They were both quiet then, Lois not knowing what to say. "Well…thanks again, Clark."

"_Don't mention it. I'll see you tomorrow, Lois."_

She said a quick goodbye to Clark, wondering what to make of that whole conversation. She just didn't know. But all that would have to wait in favor of a small crashing sound coming from DJ's bedroom.

"Two weeks without pizza, DJ. How will you ever survive?" Lois said as they took a break from packing to eat.

"Don't know, Mom. Maybe I can talk Dad into it just once while we're gone." He spoke through a mouthful of cheese, crust, and pepperoni, the words almost indistinguishable.

"Good luck. You know your dad doesn't like pizza."

"I know, but why do I have to suffer?" There it was, the flashes of Lois's sarcasm and wit that reminded her so much of herself. At times, he would say something similar, and she knew—as a mom—that he should get in trouble and be sent to bed without dessert (or something like that), but the truth was that she simply couldn't bring herself to do it. Especially not when her reaction would have been almost exactly the same remark.

"It's just two weeks, honey. Try not to think about the food and focus on all the fun you're going to have with your Dad."

DJ was uncharacteristically quiet in response, so Lois initially dropped the subject. But as he continued to pick at his pizza, she could tell that something was bothering him. "Honey, what's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Nice try, Squirt. Why so mopey all of a sudden?"

DJ sighed and looked up at Lois with pouty eyes. "Can you go with us, Mommy?"

These were the times—like this one—when she started second-guessing her decision to divorce David. As much as DJ put up a good front, he was still very much affected by his parents' separation. He was old enough that he remembered what it was like when they were still together. And Lois knew that her son's relationship with his father had suffered in the 15 months since their divorce became final. More and more, DJ was pulling away from David and not wanting to spend time with him alone. She felt responsible, but this was one situation where it would not be beneficial for them to share company for an extended period of time.

"I don't think that's a good idea."

"Cuz you and Daddy don't like each other anymore?"

Her heart broke, the confirmation that her son was in fact very knowledgeable of the situation slamming into her like a freight train. She thought about some kind of sarcastic remark, but remembered her conversation with Clark earlier about DJ being her number one priority. "I just want you to have some fun with your Dad. You know, some guy time. And I would ruin that if I came along." She stood up and took their dirty plates to the sink, knowing that she couldn't look him in the eye as she said the next part. "And anyway, I'm in the middle of a story right now."

"Oh," he said simply, seeming to immediately understand. He stood up and followed her to the sink with their glasses. "Is it a big one?"

"Yeah, honey." She smiled down at him. "It's a big one."

_Mommy's going to send Grandpa to jail,_ she thought.


	4. Chapter 4: She's Mine

Comments on this chapter, more than any other, are greatly appreciated.

**Chapter 4: She's Mine  
**

"He thought it was a toaster?"

Clark looked up from his notes as Lois continued to sound like a broken record. Admittedly, he also had to contain his laughter when Bibbo had told them that he heard the word "Toastmaster" but had dismissed the conversation because he didn't think there was anything illegal about a toaster.

"Yeah, I know. Genius he's not, Lois. But we do have to give him credit for telling us what he heard. At least now we have something solid to look for."

They were working in his apartment tonight, since Lois had no reason to be at home with DJ on vacation with his dad. He noticed she had been extremely focused the last few days, but he supposed that was because she was working under a two-week deadline to get all the dirty work done while her son and ex-husband were out of town.

"Solid is an understatement," she told him, getting up from her chair and starting to pace around the kitchen table. "Thanks to a Google search this afternoon, we are dangerously close to having an actual paper trail, as opposed to hunches and overheard conversations."

He waited for her to continue, especially since she was sporting a grin that convinced him she knew more than she was saying. "Well, come on. What did you find?"

"It's an interesting concept, the Internet," she started, turning away from him and holding the papers in her hand high in the air. "Once something is out there, it's pretty difficult to take it back." She turned around with conviction. "Imagine my surprise when I found the 'Toastmaster' thrown all over a cached version of a website detailing companies with government contracts."

"Do we know who the government contracted?"

"A company called AmerTek Industries based out of Washington, D.C. The document was a couple years old, though. I don't know how much of the information is still current."

Clark stood up and walked to the refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of water for both him and Lois. "Regardless, I think we have our first official lead to follow. But first, we need some food. Up for some Chinese?"

Lois nodded and pulled out her cell phone. "Sounds good. I know this amazing place just a few blocks from here that delivers."

"Great," Clark replied, retreating once again toward the kitchen and down the hall. "You call in the food. I'm going to change and make my own phone call."

When he returned five minutes later, he was in gray sweatpants and a white t-shirt. He had felt out of place ever since Lois arrived in an ARMY t-shirt and track pants, while he was still wearing his shirt and tie.

"The best egg rolls you will ever eat in your life will be here in about 20 minutes, Smallville."

He didn't verbally respond, only stared at his phone and walked back over to the table. He knew he shouldn't be this impatient, but he had to admit that Lois's fervor for this story was rubbing off on him. And having this first real lead made him do something he was still questioning.

"That must have been some phone call."

"Oh," he said, finally realizing that he had forgotten to tell her what he was doing. "I just called Washington to see if I could get some information about AmerTek and some military contracts."

Lois turned to the clock hanging on his wall before eyeing him with suspicion. "You have contacts in Washington already? I'm impressed, Smallville."

"Don't be too impressed," he said, once again glancing down to the cell phone in his hand. "I called my mom."

Lois laughed in response, sensing that he wasn't thrilled with his decision. She felt a comment about using his mother on the tip of her tongue, but decided instead to leave it alone. They had that conversation, and she knew that he wasn't one to take advantage of her position. If he called her, she had a feeling he wouldn't ask for much. "What's she getting for you?"

"She's going to check and see if AmerTek still has any active government contracts. You said that document was a couple years old, so I thought it was possible they were no longer active. Knowing that could save us a few steps."

"Good thinking." She was about to continue, to pick up where they left off, when Clark's phone rang. She watched as he looked down at his phone and acknowledged to her that it was the call he was waiting for. "Go," she said, motioning to him to take the call.

Lois went back to looking at the document she pulled off the Internet, trying to make sense of all these pieces that didn't quite fit together yet. But she felt like they were headed in the right direction, and that made her feel better.

Before she realized how much time had passed, Clark's doorbell rang and she heard him call from the bedroom, "Can you get that, Lois? It's probably our food. Money is on the table by the door."

She walked the short distance to the door, reminding herself to not let Clark hog all the egg rolls once he tasted how great they were. In one motion, she grabbed the money and opened the door, ready to compliment the delivery driver on how prompt they were.

But there was no delivery driver. There wasn't even Chinese food.

Just a baby. A baby in a car seat with an accompanying diaper bag. And a note…with Clark's name on it.

"Clark," she yelled down the hall. "You might want to get in here."

"You must not think very much of me right now."

They were back in the kitchen, and the baby girl Lois found outside Clark's door was thankfully still asleep in the carrier she was found in about five minutes ago. Lois was in shock, simply because she didn't think straight-laced Clark Kent had any skeletons in his closet, let alone one this big.

"Why do you say that?" she asked simply.

"It's all over your expressions, Lois." Clark was slumped over the table, running his hand through his hair and looking like his whole world just came crashing down around him. "You think I got some girl pregnant and left her. And now, she's pawned the baby off on me in revenge."

"That's a nice conspiracy theory, but I'm sure that's not true." Her eyes kept darting to the baby, watching to make sure she was still sleeping.

Clark stood up and glared at Lois, anger taking over from the shock that had enveloped him since he walked into the hallway and found a baby girl with dark hair and his chin in his doorway. "Aw, come on. I may have only known you for a month, but I know your curiosity has to be driving you crazy right now."

"Curiosity, yes. But I thought I would give you the chance to tell me the story first before I go and pass judgment on you." She lowered her voice even more than before, took another glance at the baby—still sleeping—and glared at Clark pointedly. "And unless you want to deal with a crying baby, I suggest you keep your voice down."

Lois watched as Clark sat back down in the chair and muttered an apology. He was, once again, starting to retreat into himself in light of the events.

"Listen, Clark. I think you should call Family Services and have them take custody of the baby."

"No."

"No?"

"No. Absolutely not."

The look in his eyes was now determined, but she still felt she should proceed with caution. "Is there a possibility—any at all—that she's yours, Clark?"

"Right now, I'm 95 percent sure that she _is_ mine."

"In that case, you need to read whatever is in that envelope. The contents might eliminate that remaining five percent."

Clark nodded and grabbed the envelope, being careful not to tear anything as he opened it. Nothing he found inside was very surprising: a birth certificate, a letter for him, and some general instructions. He put the rest aside and read the letter quietly.

_Clark,_

_It's ironic that I didn't tell you about Hannah because I didn't want to ruin your life, and now I'm leaving her with you anyway, therefore ruining your life. But I can't take care of her anymore, and you're the only person I would trust to raise her right._

_I truly wish things could have been different, but this is the only way now. Be sure she knows that I loved her and that I never wanted to leave her._

_Take care of our baby, Clark. _

_Love,_

_Kathleen_

"She's mine."

Lois sat down in the chair next to Clark and lowered her head to his level. "How can you be so sure?"

"Kathleen…" he started, speaking her name almost in reverence, "Kathleen is Hannah's mom."

"And that makes you so sure because…"

"Because according to this birth certificate, Hannah is about three months old. The timing is almost perfect."

Lois hung her head as she saw the look of resignation in Clark's eyes as the details started to fall into place. In that moment, she really felt for him. She could see that he was dealing with an unexpected onslaught of emotional distress. And as much as she wanted to hear all about this Kathleen, she felt like she had to be the voice of reason right now. "Can I make a suggestion?"

Clark simply nodded.

"Sooner or later, that little girl is going to wake up. We need to make sure you have everything you could possibly need to take care of her. And you should probably take at least a couple days off work until you get all the details worked out."

"We?"

"What?"

"You said 'we'."

"Oh," she said, not realizing what she said but quickly recovering. She took a chance and reached out to take his hand. He looked up in surprise but she continued. "I guess I did. But the point is that you need help, Clark. There's nothing to be ashamed of, and I don't think any less of you, but your life is never going to be the same. And let's face it, I have more experience raising a child than you."

"You're offering to help? Why would you do that?"

The question stunned Lois, who was unprepared to tell him the exact reason why, especially since she wasn't sure exactly why she was going to these lengths to help him. She stood up and started pacing, trying to concoct a reason that would be acceptable to him and not make her look like a sappy idiot. "I'm doing it because I know you would do the same thing for me if the roles were reversed. And because…you're my friend, Smallville, and friends help friends."

His reply was simple. "Thanks."

They sat in silence for a few minutes. It was in her nature to rush headlong into her new "project" of making Clark a good father, but a quick glance found that he was entranced with the form of his sleeping daughter. She suddenly felt like it wouldn't be so much work after all, especially if he doted over Hannah even half as much when she was awake.

In the meantime, she busied herself with looking through the diaper bag that was left at the door. She found diapers, formula, a few changes of clothes, and many other daily items he was going to need. But if he was going to be her full-time parent, he was going to need a whole lot more than was there.

"Listen, you're obviously pretty confident that she's yours, but I think it would be smart to eliminate any and all doubt," she chanced, hoping he wouldn't lash out at her again like earlier.

"You mean a DNA test?"

"That would be the easiest method, yes." She sat down next to him again and continued. "And you _will_ need to contact Family Services. Are you named on her birth certificate?"

"Yes. And her last name is Kent."

"Then you're already at an advantage." Lois reached across the table and grabbed her reporter's notebook, finding an empty page and grabbing a pen to make a list. "These supplies will last you a couple days, but if Hannah's going to live with you, we'll have to go shopping. The girl deserves more than two outfits and a pair of pajamas."

"What about work, Lois?"

She sighed heavily and made eye contact with him. "Tell Perry…immediately. He'll be your best friend if he knows the situation. And let me call the owner of Bayside. I'm pretty sure they could take care of Hannah during the day so you can work."

"I suppose I should call Perry and explain why I won't be at work tomorrow. It sounds like I have a full day of baby preparation to do."

"Tell you what," she said, standing up and grabbing her phone. "Why don't you let me talk to Perry and just tell him you have a family emergency I'm helping you with. Tomorrow's Friday, so he can live without us for one day, and the weekend will give us a chance to get everything in order. Monday you can go in and give him the details." Clark nodded, slowly. "While I'm making these calls, you and that can of formula should become friends. Something tells me your little girl is going to wake up hungry soon."

Clark watched her retreat toward his bedroom to make phone calls and wondered what he ever did to deserve a person like Lois as a friend. He was certain that she would want to know all about how his three-month-old daughter—that he didn't know he had—had managed to land on his doorstep, but for the most part she hadn't even made any queries. She instead had jumped in and offered to help in any way she could.

And after seeing her with DJ, he knew she would be an immense help and that he was lucky to have her in his life. He knew nothing about taking care of babies. Absolutely nothing. He was an only child—adopted even—so he never had the chance to see others, like his mother, take care of an infant. Lois was his best possible option.

At the same time, however, he knew that Lois would be second-guessing her decision once she slowed down to think about what she was getting herself into. He wasn't oblivious to the fact that she was hesitant to let him spend too much time with DJ. It was all over her face, and he even heard it in her voice the night DJ called him before he left on vacation with his dad. He didn't fault her for it; he understood the situation she was in with her ex and how difficult he was making her life. DJ was easy, though. He had meant it when he told Lois that he was a sweet kid and that he wanted to spend time with him. But the truth was there was a huge difference between spending time with other people's kids and being responsible for one of your own.

Being around Lois was difficult enough. He didn't know what it was, but ever since he found out she was a mom—had seen her shift from investigative reporter to mom and then back again without missing a beat—he couldn't seem to take his eyes off her. Up until tonight, he thought he was doing a pretty good job of keeping his growing feelings for his partner at bay, but tonight? Well, tonight changed everything. The sad part of the whole situation is that while he recognized that their dynamic had changed, he wasn't exactly sure _how_ it had changed and if it was for the better or worse.

Lois had said herself earlier that they were friends and that was why she felt the need to help him. And when he thought about it, he realized that she had been letting him into her life since day one. It was, of course, out of what she called necessity, but he knew that she wouldn't have done so if she didn't trust him. For as much as they bantered and bickered, one thing that stood out about their relationship thus far was that they had always been up front with each other. He made a conscious decision to tell her everything she wanted to know about his ex-girlfriend Kathleen.

He was reading over the instructions on the can of formula when he heard her re-enter the kitchen, looking satisfied with herself.

"Okay, Smallville. We have the day off tomorrow. We'll go by Family Services in the morning, then over to Bayside to talk with the Services Director, then shopping for sleepyhead here," she said, pointing to the still peacefully sleeping Hannah.

"Lois, I…"

"Hey, don't thank me yet. I learned how to be a mom, but I had nine months to prepare. This is some hard core on-the-job training you're going through here."

"In that case, we better get started on lesson number one so I don't have to keep you here all night." He went back to the can of formula, opening the top and preparing to scoop some of the powder into the bottle he found in the diaper bag.

"Answer me this: how comfortable is your couch?"

He shrugged, not exactly sure where she was going. "Okay, I guess. I've never had to sleep on it for an extended period of time."

"Well, I wouldn't be a very good friend if I left you alone with a baby when you obviously have no idea what you're doing. If it's okay with you, I'll sleep on the couch tonight. That way, if you have any trouble, I'll be here to help."

"Lois, you don't have to do that," Clark said apologetically. And yet, while his mouth was speaking the words, he was inwardly thanking her for offering.

"But I'm going to, Clark. Face it. You have no idea what you're doing," she said, walking up behind him and stopping his hand before it put what would have been the fifth scoop of formula into the baby bottle.

His eyes darted to where her hand covered his, feeling a jolt of excitement at the contact. He held still, not wanting to give her any reason to pull away, and then slowly turned his gaze to her face. Her beautiful face that was smiling gently and pleading with him to let her help.

Clark hung his head in defeat, knowing not only that she was right but also that just the thought of having her here made him calmer. Even if it was as a friend who was helping him learn how to care for a baby. "Okay, but you're sleeping in my bed. I'll take the couch."

Lois didn't argue, mostly because Hannah chose that very moment to wake up. She began to cry loudly, and Clark desperately looked to Lois for instructions on what to do. "Lesson one, then. Don't panic."

"That's easy for you to say." They were both standing over Hannah now, Clark already feeling the need to ease whatever was causing her discomfort.

"She most likely needs her diaper changed and a bottle. But first, you have to pick her up. Be sure to support her head."

Clark moved forward cautiously, his hands moving in about ten different directions. "Here," Lois told him, taking his left hand and turning it so his palm was facing upward. "Cup her head in your hand." She then took his right hand and did the same. "Now, do the same with her bottom. Then, lift gently and evenly. Use your body for extra support." He cradled Hannah against his body, taking extra care to support her head. He smiled back at Lois when his daughter slowed her crying just slightly. "See, you're a natural, Smallville." She grabbed a diaper out of the bag and directed him to the floor, where she had laid out a blanket just in case.

"Take a deep breath before you open that diaper. You never know what you're going to find," she told him, trying to hold in the snicker at the utter mess they could find upon unfastening the diaper.

"Oh, goodie." Clark deadpanned. He already knew, without having yet experienced it, that this was going to be his least favorite part of being a single father.

Baby wipes and a new diaper at the ready, he unfastened the diaper and readied himself for a possible stench by closing his eyes and ever so slightly turning his head away. When he heard Lois chuckle softly, he turned to face his daughter once again.

"Consider yourself lucky, Smallville. She's only wet this time."

Clark breathed a sigh of relief and watched carefully as Lois walked him through changing a baby's diaper. Once they were finished, Lois held Hannah—who had mostly stopped crying but still was whimpering slightly—while she talked him through making a bottle. She helped him find a burp rag in the bag and sat him down at the couch with Hannah as the baby sucked hungrily on the bottle.

Having successfully learned lessons two and three (which Lois titled "Making a bottle" and "_always_ use a burp rag," respectively), Clark laid a once again sound asleep Hannah back in her carrier, which he laid just a few feet from the couch.

Lois stood and stretched, the weariness of the day finally hitting her now that the excitement seemed to have died down for the night. She began to walk toward the bedroom, having silently accepted Clark's offer to sleep in his room while he took the couch. On impulse, he got up and started to follow her down the hallway, his heart not quite ready to watch her disappear for the night.

She turned around, practically running into him as she did so. He watched as her eyes glazed over as they fell from his face down to his chest. When she looked at him again, the glaze was gone and she seemed to remember what she originally was going to say.

"She'll probably sleep for a while now, Smallville," she said, not quite able to look him in the eye. "If she wakes up and you need help, come get me."

He nodded very slightly, their eyes finally meeting each other's. He was rooted in his spot, not wanting to let her go, as she had him in a trance that had his heart hammering loudly and his mind swirling. Before he knew what he was doing, his hand slowly reached out and took hers, a smile adorning his face when she didn't pull away and she instead smiled back.

"I will." He didn't attempt to make another move, but instead dropped her hand and allowed her to walk the rest of the way to the bedroom. She made it to the closed door before he was able to speak again. "Hey, Lois?"

"Yeah?"

For a moment, he forgot what he was going to say when she turned around to face him and her hair whipped around to follow. It framed her face, and together with the small smile on her face, made her look angelic in the dim light of the hallway. "Uh," he stammered, regaining his composure. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it, Smallville." And she disappeared into the bedroom, making him wish even more that he was more than just her friend.


	5. Chapter 5: History Lesson, Part I

**Chapter 5: History Lesson, Part I  
**

Lois woke the next morning to the smell of freshly brewed coffee and a silence she wasn't expecting. No crying, no racket, and no pleas for help from Clark.

The silence continued as she walked down the hall and into the kitchen, thankfully finding an empty coffee cup next to the pot. She poured herself a cup and began to walk into the living room, intent on seeing if Clark was still asleep.

Sure enough, Lois found him stretched out on the couch, his bare chest serving as a pillow for Hannah as they both slept comfortably. She smiled to herself in recognition of how adorable the scene was. Even in sleep, his large hands were cradling her in all the right places, making sure that she wouldn't fall.

Not wanting to wake them or cause any kind of disruption, she sat down in the chair next to the couch and tucked her legs under her body while she sipped on her coffee. As she watched him sleep, her mind wandered back to last night in the hallway before she went to bed. So often when they were together, it was in a professional capacity and if they started talking about their personal lives, it was in one way or another related to their work. But last night? Last night something changed. Through a simple look and caress of his hand, Lois realized that she was falling for her partner.

She wanted to be cautious, knowing that both of them had all kinds of baggage. But as she watched Clark shift ever-so-slightly in sleep and continue to protect the daughter he only learned about 12 hours ago, she realized that she had to throw out every prior relationship experience she had up to this point. Sure, it was going to be tricky. They both had children, and her ex-husband was constantly threatening to take away DJ from her. Add into the mix that she and Clark were investigating her former father-in-law, and the whole situation was a recipe for disaster.

Of course, she could be reading it all wrong. There was always the possibility that she was getting worked up over nothing, in which case she would inevitably find herself disappointed and hurt.

Lois focused her attention on Clark once again to see that his eyes had drifted open and he was running his hands over his face. "Good morning," she whispered when his face was visible again and his eyes met hers.

"Good morning," he replied sleepily.

"How long has she been there with you?"

"About an hour, I guess," he said, looking at his watch. "I see you found the coffee."

"Yeah, thanks." She glanced down at the half empty cup and then back at him. "I didn't even hear her cry."

"I didn't give her much of a chance. I found myself watching her half the night, afraid that she would start crying and I wouldn't hear her. When she looked like she was about to cut loose, I was ready with a clean diaper and a bottle."

Lois smiled. "Clark Kent, on the job for less than a day and already a Father of the Year candidate."

"I don't know about that, Lois."

"I do. You're going to be a great dad, Smallville."

She watched as his facial expressions changed somewhat rapidly, as if he was struggling with a decision. Just when she thought she was going to have to start listing reasons why she believed it, he lifted a hand and motioned for her to sit on the floor next to him. She walked over, and looked down at how Hannah was curled up on his chest. "You want me to put her in the carrier?"

"No," he whispered, shaking his head. "I'm afraid to move her."

"Isn't it uncomfortable?"

"Just leave her, Lois. It's long overdue daddy/daughter bonding time. I wanted to talk to you and got sick of whispering across the room."

Lois nodded her agreement and sat down close to where his head was resting so she could see his face clearly, and then pulled her knees close to her chest before encircling her arms around them.

"Listen, Lois," Clark started tentatively, "about Kathleen…"

"You don't have to explain."

"I know, and I appreciate you not asking questions. But I want—no, I need—to share this with someone."

"Okay, then."

"Kathleen was…unexpected. I went back to school with the mindset that I was there for the sole purpose finishing my degree. We met during my sophomore year in Communication Law. She was pre-Law and we clashed at first. It probably wasn't much of a coincidence that when it came time for us to analyze the law briefs, we were thrown together."

"I take it the rest is history?"

"Something like that. Thankfully, that was the only class we ever had together. She was so smart, Lois. And beautiful. And I was a big pile of goo when I was around her." Clark stared at the ceiling, his mind focused on the memories of his ex-girlfriend and the mother of his child. "We were together for two years, but we hit a rough patch before our senior year. She wasn't thrilled with my decision to take an internship in Gotham City."

"Are you sure it wasn't jealousy?" Lois asked cheekily.

Clark smiled back. "I'm pretty sure. Anyway, that summer before I left we were living together in Metropolis. She had an internship at one of the law offices in the city, and I was working at the university newspaper. We went into it thinking it was going to be great, maybe even thinking it was a dress rehearsal for how things would be after we graduated.

"But as the day that I left for Gotham got closer, we started fighting. About stupid stuff, like leaving a window open or not making the bed. Before I knew what was happening, it was two days before I left for Gotham and she was breaking up with me and telling me she was transferring to Coast City for her senior year."

"And you say all this was because she was upset that you were interning in Gotham City?"

"She never said it outright, but I'm pretty sure that was it." He paused, choosing his next words carefully. "Kathleen is very meticulous. Within fifteen minutes of telling her that I got the internship, she had come up with no less than five reasons why it was a bad idea. Not to mention, she started thinking about ways to get me on at the Daily Planet instead."

"Can I say something, Smallville?" He nodded slowly, so she continued. "I think she was afraid of losing you. She saw you going off to another city—without her—and she was afraid you would forget about her."

"That wouldn't have happened," he told her simply.

"Maybe, maybe not."

Clark got quiet and contemplated what Lois was suggesting. She was right that he couldn't be certain whether or not his relationship with Kathleen would have survived while he was gone in Gotham. He knew it wasn't a case of him being committed, but simply that distance of any kind takes a toll.

In the end, he decided against vocalizing his agreement and simply nodded in her direction.

"So," Lois started. "I know you don't want to move Hannah right now, but lesson number four is 'take advantage of when she's sleeping.' As in, now would be the perfect opportunity for you to take a shower and get dressed." She quickly glanced at his bare chest and immediately chastised herself as she stood up. "Come on, Smallville. I'll watch her."

Clark moved his hands from where he was holding Hannah, allowing Lois to pick her up and lay her in the carrier. When she turned around, confident that Hannah wasn't going to wake up, she was surprised to see Clark standing almost directly behind her.

"She's beautiful, isn't she?" he said softly.

Lois turned her head, taking a deep breath as she realized how close they were and that he was only clothed from the waist down. "Yeah, she is," she breathed. Turning back to face him, she gathered herself and struggled to keep her gaze above his neck. "You better go, Clark. We have a ton to accomplish today and we still need to stop by my place so I can shower and change before we get started."

He nodded his agreement and walked back to his bedroom, leaving Lois alone in the living room wondering just how many ways Clark Kent could leave her breathless.

"Mr. Kent, I have to admit, this is highly unusual."

Mrs. Kennison, the case worker assigned to his and Hannah's "case" at the Department of Family Services, was trying her best to be mean and heartless, but Clark could tell that she would cave if persuaded enough.

"I know, Mrs. Kennison. To be honest, I wasn't expecting this. I didn't even know she existed until last night."

"See, that's what has me confused," she said back, her eyes narrowing. "How can you so blindly accept that she's yours? You haven't even had time to have a paternity test done."

Lois had been quiet up until this point, allowing Clark to explain his situation, but she chose this moment to speak up and formally announce her presence. "Listen, lady. Clark might not have known about Hannah, but he recognizes that he's been made responsible for her and is willing to give her a home and take care of her. I would think that your office would be accepting of him considering how many dead-beat dads we have in this country."

Clark sat next to her, his mouth hanging open in shock. Mrs. Kennison, on the other hand, didn't look very happy. "I'm sorry, Miss…"

"Lane. Lois Lane."

"Miss Lane, how exactly are you involved in this situation? Are you Mr. Kent's girlfriend?"

Clark and Lois shared nervous glances with each other and then with the woman sitting in front of them. "No," Lois replied with a small laugh. "We work together. I'm his partner."

"Are you cops? Because if you are I would think—"

No, lady, we're reporters. For the Daily Planet." Lois was quickly getting agitated with the woman for more than one reason. If she made another assumption, Lois was going to have to jump the desk and give this pencil pusher a piece of her mind. She could apologize to Clark later.

Sensing Lois's anger, Clark laid a hand on hers and gave her a pleading look. He only returned his attention back to Mrs. Kennison when he was sure that Lois was calmed down. "Mrs. Kennison, I _do_ plan on having a paternity test done. But as you can see from the paperwork, I'm named as Hannah's father. Surely that gives me rights."

"You're right, Mr. Kent, it does. I apologize for my…curiosity." She shuffled some papers on her desk and pushed one in the direction of Clark. "Please send us the results of the paternity test once it's finished and we'll put it in your file. In the meantime, you're allowed to keep custody of Hannah as long as you agree to weekly visits from the department for six months. They'll also want to see where you work, observe you there, and talk to some of your co-workers." Mrs. Kennison specifically eyed Lois when she said the last words, though Lois was sure that the woman would make sure that any case worker stayed as far away from possible from her when they visited the Planet. "Do you understand everything that will be asked of you?"

"Yes, Ma'am, I do. Is there anything else I need to do?"

"Just one thing," she said, a small smile adorning her face as she pushed another paper in his direction. "This is a list of criteria the case worker is going to be specifically asking about when she visits. You can expect a call from her in a couple days to set up your first visit. My suggestion to you is to have as many of those criteria met by the time she actually visits you for the first time."

Clark studied the paper, noticing that many of the items on the list were hopefully going to be taken care of by the end of the day. He decided not to get over confident and share this information, though. Instead, he gathered the papers and stood, reaching his hand across the desk. "Thank you, Mrs. Kennison, for all your help."

Hours later, Lois followed Clark into his apartment, still ranting about their time at the Department of Family Services. "I can't believe the nerve of that lady."

Clark laid a sleeping Hannah down carefully before turning back to Lois. "It was an honest mistake, Lois. We _were_ there together with a baby. She had every reason to think that—"

"No, I wasn't talking about that," she interjected, realizing what he was referring to. She almost faltered, but quickly regained her composure and bravado. "I can't believe she didn't know who I was."

"The nerve of that woman," Clark laughed in response. He followed her into the kitchen, where he found her grinning from ear to ear as she leaned against the counter. Walking to the refrigerator and grabbing them each a bottle of water, he tossed it to her and mirrored her stance against the counter. "Thanks again for all your help today."

"I should be thanking you. If you weren't in need of a crash course in parenting, I'd be stuck at home alone with nothing but a Blues Clues marathon."

A look of realization crossed Clark's face. "That's what I have to look forward to, isn't it?" He said, the seriousness draining from his face in favor of yet another smile.

Lois watched him trying to stay light-hearted, but she knew he was having a moment where the weight of how much his life was changing was inescapable. She knew the feeling, having experienced it herself. "Unfortunately, yes," she said, crossing the room to stand next to him. "But, the good outweighs the endless hours of mindless children's programming you'll have to endure."

"I hope so."

"Trust me. The first time that little girl looks at you, recognizes your face and smiles, you'll forget all about the dirty diapers and sleepless nights."

Clark turned to face her, resting his right hand on the counter as he leaned into her slightly. The look of sincerity on her face was one he learned early on that she didn't let many people see. In what was quickly becoming a habit, he found himself wondering how he became one of the people she trusted with that side of herself. He searched for just the right words, knowing that he should respond in some way. But instead he found himself gazing into the eyes of an amazing and beautiful woman who currently had him under her spell.

"What?" she asked, curious as to why he was looking at her the way he was.

"I just…I'm in awe, that's all."

"Are you sure you're not just tired?" Lois asked, trying to lighten the mood. She had a good idea where this was going, and even though she wasn't opposed to the idea, she had to at least put up a fight. "We did a lot of running today."

Clark shook his head and frowned slightly. "Don't do that, Lois."

"Do what?"

"Don't play dumb either. I'm in awe," he started, taking a huge chance and cupping her cheek with his left hand, "because you opened up to me and I know that's not something you do very easily." He paused and carefully moved a step closer to her. "What are you so afraid of?"

Lois, who was carefully avoiding looking in his eyes the whole time he was talking, brought her eyes up slowly to meet his. She whispered, "You."

"Me?"

She sighed heavily, reaching up and grabbing his hand and pushing it away as she walked away just a few steps in a desperate attempt to distance herself enough to convey her meaning. "Not you per se, Clark. It scares me how easy it is to open up to you. And this," she continued, her hands making a circling gesture between them, "whatever it is, would be all kinds of complicated."

"But don't you think we owe it to ourselves to find out _what_ it is?"

"That's the thing, Clark. It's not just about us."

"I know that." He crossed the room and stood in front of her, this time invading her personal space a little more. "And I'm sorry if it sounded that way; it wasn't my intention." He paused and watched her for a moment as her breath hitched slightly as he moved closer, giving him the confidence to continue. "I know the timing isn't the best. But I'm starting to believe that we bring out the best in each other, and it would be a shame to let that pass by without acknowledging and taking advantage of it."

Lois scoffed, but didn't move away from his embrace. "What good could I possibly bring out in a boy scout?"

He didn't answer, just stared at her as if telling her telepathically. She held his gaze, and Clark took notice of the way her chest heaved from heavy breathing and she bit her bottom lip briefly while she waited for him to answer. Despite the confidence he felt, her appearance before him stole any coherent sentence he might have been able to put together to answer her question. What he realized, finally, was that he had to convey his feelings with more than just words. He reached up and cupped her chin, quickly brushing a lock of hair behind her ear, and gently brought his lips to hers. He was careful not to ask for much, just a confirmation that though she had reservations, she felt the same connection he did.

Soon enough she began to kiss him back, though he made no move to deepen the kiss. He instead pulled back and looked her in the eye, a small smile on his face. "It's been a long day."

Lois nodded in agreement, her voice not yet returned. Clark backed away from her, giving her a path out of the kitchen, and she walked past him. While she found she was unable to look him in the eye, she made sure her hand brushed against his as she passed.

She wanted to be mad at him for guaranteeing that she wouldn't sleep a wink that night. But she couldn't find the resolve to stay that way. Her solitude in his bedroom wouldn't allow her, as it was a constant reminder of what she wanted—and what she feared—most.


	6. Chapter 6: History Lesson, Part II

Author's Note: I need to say thank you to all the people who have added this story to their alerts and also to everyone who has left a review thus far. Your comments are very encouraging and they make it easier to come home from school after a long day and _want_ to write.

Chapter 7 is with my beta right now, and then this will be caught up with what I have written. That means there will be a little more time between updates, but I hope it won't be too long.

**Chapter 6: History Lesson, Part II  
**

The next morning, Lois _was_ woken by the sound of Hannah's crying. She initially rolled over, remembering how on the ball Clark was the day before, but she jumped out of bed when the crying continued.

She ran her fingers through her hair and threw open the door wondering what could have kept Clark from stopping his daughter's cries. Her answer almost ran into her as she walked purposely down the hallway in the form of a soaking wet Clark wearing nothing but a towel.

Thankfully Clark was rushing to Hannah's aid, because Lois could do nothing but stare.

"I'm sorry, Lois," Clark said frantically as he picked up Hannah and started rubbing his hand up and down her back. "She was still asleep so I thought I'd get a shower. You know, rule number four."

"No problems, Smallville," Lois choked out as she gathered herself and joined him in the living room. She wasn't ready for this, she kept telling herself. But as she watched him move around smoothly and manage to calm down Hannah, she started to wonder: _why not?_ "What time is it anyway?"

"About 6:30."

Lois groaned and ran her hands over her face. She never imagined that she would be up before seven in the morning on a Sunday while DJ was gone. A cursory glance to the coffee pot told her it was still in hibernation, and she groaned again.

She opened her eyes to find Clark walking toward her and smiling as Hannah rested her head on his shoulder. "You can go back to bed if you'd like. Or, I could start the coffee and make us all some breakfast," he said nonchalantly.

"Eh," she muttered, "I'm awake now. Might as well start the coffee."

Clark punched a couple buttons on the pot and turned around to face her. He was still wearing nothing but a towel and she quickly moved forward, holding out her hands and reaching for Hannah. "What?" he asked.

"Please don't make me remind you of your clothing choice right now," she laughed, glancing down only slightly in hopes that he could catch on to what she was suggesting.

He laughed in embarrassment and held out Hannah to Lois. "Give me five minutes," he told her, walking down the hall.

Sitting down with Hannah, Lois held the baby so she could take a good look at her without Clark noticing. She had to admit that a part of her questioned why he was so accepting of this baby before even getting a DNA test and knowing without a doubt that she was his. But as she studied Hannah's face, she started to realize that the resemblance was unmistakable. Hannah had Clark's nose and chin, but the feature that she couldn't deny was that she had his eyes. Those beautiful blue eyes that made his whole face glow when he smiled.

_When did I notice that?_ she asked herself. Hannah's hands reached out, and Lois watched as Hannah took her finger and wrapped it up tightly in her little hand. "I hate to say it, little one, but you just made life way more complicated." She contemplated her next words, knowing that what she was about to admit, even if it _was_ to a baby, was going to be hard to voice out loud. "But I have this strange feeling that if anyone can make it work, it would be your daddy. He's a pretty amazing guy. You'll learn that soon enough."

Clark came out of his bedroom intent on getting right to work on making breakfast, but as he came around the corner he had to stop at the sight. Lois was holding Hannah and had her back to the hallway. He saw Hannah grasp Lois's finger and make a fist, and decided to just lean against the wall and watch them for a minute.

He knew, of course, that DJ was once a baby and she had found herself in much the same situation of having to hold a baby. But even as he knew this, the idea always been just that—an idea. It was an abstract concept, something that he knew but never had the opportunity to experience himself. She sat there holding Hannah, completely at ease, and he finally felt like he completely knew the side of Lois Lane that was a mother.

His introspection was interrupted when he heard her speak. _"I hate to say it, little one, but you just made life way more complicated."_ Clark's ears perked up at her admission, though slightly backhanded. He wished he could see her face, her expression, but he quickly decided that any admission she made verbally in regards to their relationship was better than none at all, no matter if he could see her face or not.

"_But I have this strange feeling that if anyone can make it work, it would be your daddy. He's a pretty amazing guy. You'll learn that soon enough."_

He stopped himself from responding in some way. Mostly, he was afraid of scaring her and making her back-track. But his heart still swelled, knowing she thought that much of him. Between last night and this morning, he had decided not to pressure her after their kiss. She had legitimate concerns, and he felt it was only fair to take them seriously. But at the same time, he wasn't about to let her off the hook.

Standing himself up straight after leaning against the wall, Clark walked the rest of the way into the kitchen? "So, any breakfast requests, ?"

Lois jumped in surprise but appeared to recover quickly upon his entrance into the kitchen. "You don't have to cook, Clark. Give me a piece of toast to go with that coffee and I'll be just fine."

"Are you sure? I could whip up some chocolate chip pancakes in a matter of minutes."

"I appreciate it, but you don't have to," she replied, her uneasiness about holding his daughter while having slightly impure thoughts about the father causing what appetite she had to flee at record speed. He might be dressed, but Lois was still having a hard time being around him, she realized. And that was a problem, since she hadn't quite figured out how she could possibly make anything more than a professional relationship work with him. She needed more time.

Having decided that Lois wasn't going to budge on the issue of breakfast, Clark walked away from the stove and poured two cups of coffee and put some bread in the toaster. Lois stood there and watched him the whole time, still holding a calm Hannah in her arms. "I think she likes you," he said over his shoulder.

Lois felt a sappy answer on her tongue but held it in, instead favoring the kind of comment that usually functioned as her defense mechanism. "Who wouldn't like me, Smallville?"

"Let's ask Perry," Clark said, turning to face her and crossing his arms across his chest. "Rumor has it he's compiled a list of people you've pissed off so much that they might one day want to silence you." He immediately cringed internally, his comment coming off harsher than he had intended. The look of shock on her face made him almost happy that he said it, though.

"He does?" Lois's voice cracked slightly, being once again reminded just how much strain her profession endangered others' lives. As she thought though, she could come up with at least a half-dozen names that were probably on Perry's rumored "list." Clark nodded in return, and she could feel every ounce of her bravado leaving her as he did so. He looked concerned, and she wondered what happened to the banter they were engaging in not a couple minutes ago.

The wordless exchange they were having was a perfect example of what was making Lois so hesitant in regards to her constantly evolving feelings for Clark. Everything about him seemed too good to be true. He was obviously very worried about her, but unlike David's usual reaction, Clark chose to remain calm and speak _with_ her, instead of _to_ her, while issuing ultimatums. When he finally did voice his concerns, he sounded as if he was afraid she was mad at him.

"Listen…I get it, Lois. I really do. I know you feel a sense of purpose and that you don't always necessarily intend on getting in half the trouble you do—"

"I never intend on getting in trouble," she interjected, trying to keep her voice even because she knew he wasn't trying to pick a fight.

"I know. I didn't mean it that way. I—" He stopped mid-thought, crossing the room to where Lois was sitting with Hannah and pulling up a chair next to them. "I just think we need to be cautious, Lois. We'd like to think that the Senator wouldn't try to silence you if he thought we were getting too close, but Mannheim is a different story."

"Don't underestimate my father-in-law, Clark."

"_Ex_-father-in-law."

"That's exactly my point. Michael's never been that fond of me, mostly because I wasn't president of the Senator Vega fan club. He would love to have an excuse to be rid of me."

"What did you do to piss him off?"

Lois could tell from the look in Clark's eyes that he believed her to at least be partly to blame for her not being friendly with Michael. Needing to gather herself before she launched into the story, she expertly carried a now sound asleep Hannah in one harm and her coffee cup in the other as she went into the living room. She set down her cup, laid the baby down without waking her, then sat on the couch and took a long drink of her coffee. She said nothing, hoping that Clark would take the hint and give her a minute before joining her.

When he joined her on the couch, the way she was biting her lip worried him. "Lois?"

"DJ was an accident," she stated matter-of-factly.

Clark opened his mouth to respond, but immediately realized he couldn't form any words. He was expecting her to talk about Senator Vega, not tell him that DJ was an accident. Was she trying to change the subject or just stalling? He had no idea.

Thankfully, she explained her statement.

"Not an accident, actually. More like a surprise. We hadn't planned on having kids so early, especially since I was just starting my senior year of college when I found out I was pregnant. David and I had only been married a couple months."

Clark studied her, her hands holding the coffee mug close to her mouth and periodically breathing in the smell of her drink. He felt odd listening to her talk about David in such a calm way. If and when she ever mentioned him, she was usually angry and ranting about him in some way. But seeing her so contemplative? It gave him the feeling that she was still grieving over what she lost.

"David wanted me to stay home with DJ longer than I did, but I was determined that I wasn't going to let being a mother define me. DJ was born at the end of July, and I was out job hunting by the first part of October. Of course, my first choice was the Daily Planet."

"Of course," Clark agreed, urging her to continue.

"I wasn't expecting to be hired, but I figured I must have impressed someone. I started in the basement, naturally. One of my first assignments was to cover a press conference Michael attended for the Metropolis Public Schools Foundation. I wasn't thrilled to do it because I felt like it was a conflict of interest, but Mr. Hoeniges—the editor who hired me—said he had confidence that I would be completely objective. And I was, so much so that I was given another event that involved Michael. Then another, and another…"

"Okay, I'm sensing a trend here."

"Yeah, I was too. It was around Christmas time when the situation started getting sticky. Everything that I'd written about the _'Saintly Senator,'_" she drawled, "was pretty innocuous up to the point when I was asked to write about a bill that was up for a vote right before the winter recess. Long story short, it was a popular bill that Michael was opposed to. I stuck with my instructions and remained objective, which meant pointing out the fact that he was the main opponent to a bill that later passed in the Senate by a landslide. It made him look like a fool."

"Let me guess. He wasn't happy."

"That's the understatement of the century, Smallville. By that time, Hoeniges had made the spur of the moment decision to retire and Wayne Enterprises brought in Perry to be the new editor. A week after he took over, he called me into his office.

"_Have a seat, Miss Lane."_

_Lois sat in the chair opposite her new boss, not knowing what to expect. Sure, she knew all about the legendary Perry White, but what kind of boss was he? She really had no idea, and for that reason alone she was shaking in her four-inch heels._

"_Or, should I say," he hesitated, sitting down in his much bigger chair and looking her straight in the eye, "Mrs. Vega."_

_Lois felt her mouth drop open, try as she might to not betray what poker face she might possibly have._

"_Okay, that answers that question," he said in a lighter tone, leaning back in his chair and taking a cigar out of his top drawer. He didn't light it, just put it in his mouth and periodically played with it. "I just want some answers, Lois. A simple 'yes' or 'no' will suffice. I'd rather not get into the politics right now."_

_She nodded, knowing that this moment could make or break her career as a journalist. If she got fired from the Daily Planet, she was essentially toast. No one else would hire her._

"_Are you married to Senator Vega's son, David?"_

"_Yes."_

"_Have you written no less than five articles about Senator Vega since you were hired two months ago?"_

"_Yes."_

"_Were you told to write these articles?"_

"_Yes."_

"_Did you know that Hoeniges was in the Senator's back pocket?"_

"_No." As the enormity of what Perry had just told her began to sink in, her questions started to pile up in her brain. More importantly, she started to dissect every waking moment of the last two months working at the Planet. She was a lap dog, plain and simple. And it was everything she swore she would never be._

"_I'm guessing then that you had no idea that your father-in-law has been in here five times since I was hired three weeks ago to try and 'get you in line,' I believe were his words. Lucky me, I even got a couple threats."_

"_Mr. White, I—"_

"_It's Perry, Lois. Mr. White was my father."_

"_Okay, Perry. I don't know what to say. I know I should have questioned my assignments more, but I guess I let my ambition get in the way."_

"_I wish half my reporters had your ambition. Long story short, I told the Senator that it was my job to assign reporters, not his. He may have had my predecessor wrapped around his finger, but I have no such arrangement with him. No more free publicity, Lois. Furthermore, none from you. If you ever write a piece on Senator Vega again, it better be for a damn good reason."_

_Lois struggled to find the appropriate words, but came up short. It wasn't often that she found herself speechless, but this was definitely one of those times. Sensing that their conversation was over, she slowly stood and turned away from her editor and walked toward the door._

"_Lois?" she heard Perry say as she reached for the door handle._

"_You should know…Vega got you the job. He wanted someone on the inside."_

_The relative calm she felt quickly dissipated and she slammed the door shut instead of exiting the office. "What?" she fumed._

"_You heard me."_

"_So I…"_

"_Initially, no. But you're damn good, Lois. In fact, I'm moving you out of the basement, effective Monday. You'll have a new office on the third floor."_

"_Wait. That's the city desk."_

"_It is. I'm giving you the city council beat."_

_Lois stood stunned, wondering how she could go from being in an interrogation to getting a promotion, all in the span of one afternoon._

"Let me get this straight. Senator Vega got you the job at the Planet because he wanted some free publicity?"

"He knew that by placing me—a new reporter anxious to make a name for herself—at the Planet, he could arrange for someone to make sure he was always seen in a positive light. He paid off Hoeniges to make sure that happened."

"I get it now," he said, eliciting a questioning look from Lois. "I get why you assumed I was trying to help out my mom when I was first hired."

"Oh, yeah. That." Lois moved away from him slightly because of the guilt that she felt. "I was making generalizations. You didn't deserve any of that. I guess I'm still just a little bitter."

Clark shifted his position on the couch so he was facing her, unintentionally getting closer to her and resting his shoulder and arm on the back of the couch. His hand was within reach of Lois's shoulder, and he resisted the strong temptation to comfort her as she relayed her story.

"You said Senator Vega got mad because of an article you wrote. Was that before Perry was made editor?"

"It was odd timing. The story was actually assigned while Hoeniges was there, but it didn't run until after Perry took over. Michael coming in and complaining about me was what tipped Perry off that something else was going on. Perry told Michael that he might have been able to strong-arm Hoeniges, but Perry wasn't going to get anyone play 'armchair editor' with his newspaper."

Clark contemplated his next question for a moment. Just how much did he want to know about Lois's relationship with her ex-husband? He knew, to a certain extent, that the subject couldn't be completely avoided. But at this point, he wasn't sure he wanted to be the one to bring up the subject. He took a deep breath, and blurted out the question before he could second-guess himself any further. "What did David think about all this?"

Lois threw her head back and started chuckling to herself. "Well, that was the beginning of the end, right there. He thought I should be thankful for everything Michael did for me. The ethics conversation was completely lost on him. My credibility as a journalist was never important to him because he believed that I should have been at home taking care of DJ, not 'smoking out political corruption in Suicide Slum.'"

Clark immediately thought of five different responses to her comment, but found himself unable to vocalize any of them. He remained quiet, worried that he would sound harsh and unfeeling. Regardless of how he felt about David, the last thing he needed to do was share this information with Lois.

"Clark."

"What?"

"You can say it, you know. My feelings won't be hurt."

"How do you know what I'm going to say?"

"Oh please, Smallville." She leaned back slightly, getting a good look at this face and sighed, knowing that she was right about her initial feeling. He was holding back…big time. "You've formed some opinions about David but you won't say anything because you're a polite Midwestern farm boy. And you're worried that I'm still sensitive when it comes to my divorce. Don't worry. The divorce might have only been finalized 15 months ago, but my marriage was over a long time ago."

"Still, it's not my place to say anything."

"You're the one who wanted to know what I did to piss Michael off so much."

"I know, but…" he struggled, trying to come up with a good enough excuse. "Can't we just talk about something else?"

"O-kay," Lois replied, drawing out the response with what she hoped was just a hint of skepticism. "We'll talk about something else. What did you have in mind?"

"Us."

"What about us, Clark?" Though she acted ignorant, Lois knew exactly what he was referring to. She supposed, however, that she couldn't run away from it forever.

"If nothing else, I think we should at least come to an understanding." He reached out and took her hand, feeling more confident when she didn't pull away from him but instead gently squeezed his hand in response.

"An understanding."

"Talk to me, Lois. Please."

Lois hesitated, not sure how he would take what she had to say. Her eyes found where their hands were joined, and she struggled to hide the small smile that crossed her lips. "I'm not going to deny that there are feelings there, Clark. But we both have so much going on in our lives right now. We have to think about how this is going to affect everyone else in our lives."

"Let's start at the beginning, then. How do you think DJ would take it?"

"He likes you, that's for sure. But for all he knows, you're nothing more than my partner from work. If our status changed, his opinion might do the same."

"When the time comes, maybe we can try to ease him into the idea."

"Maybe, but I think there's someone else we should be more concerned with, Clark."

"Who?"

Lois took a deep breath, steeling herself for what was sure to be a difficult topic. "David. He doesn't like you."

"He's not the one I want to date."

Lois smiled, thankful for his attempt to lighten the mood, though he failed miserably. "That's good to know. But seriously, he could make our lives hell if we're not careful. His belief that I'm already miserable is part of the reason he hasn't sued for custody yet. If he thought I was happy? He might step up his efforts to take away DJ."

Clark took in her response, feeling a little guilty for forcing her to confront their situation sooner than she might have been comfortable with at this time. But as he rubbed his thumb gently across the back of her hand, he couldn't look away and deny how he felt.

"Then for now, we keep this to ourselves."

"And what is _this_, exactly?" Her eyes flickered to the space between them, making it clear that he had to say what he meant, not just assume that she understood.

Clark shifted in his seat, moving closer to her so that their knees were now touching. "Let's not label it, at least not yet. We'll just play it by ear and do everything we can to balance each other."

Lois nodded slowly, taking in everything he suggested. Truthfully, it sounded like a good plan and try as she might, she couldn't think of a good argument. "You've thought all this out, haven't you?"

"I won't lie to you, Lois. I've thought about it—about you—quite a bit. And I've thought about how this affects everyone, too. I just don't think we should sacrifice our own happiness."

"Hmm," Lois said, in what sounded like a non-committal response. But when her eyes finally met his, they held a sparkle that had been absent during their whole conversation. "I guess there's only one thing to do then."

"What's tha—"

His question was cut off by the feel of her lips on his, an action that was completely unexpected by him and therefore effective, in her opinion. She leaned forward, stopping short of getting in his lap, and let him know in no uncertain terms that they were _together_ in this.

When they pulled apart, Lois leaned her forehead against his and smiled. A bright smile that went ear to ear and tugged at his heart and made him smile in return as he ran his hand through her hair. "You should smile more," he told her softly.

"So should you."

They were silent for a few moments, taking in each other and committing it to memory. Clark was the one who finally sat up and leaned away from her, standing up and pulling her with him. "The delivery guys should be here soon. I suppose I should clear a place for the crib in my office."

Lois remembered the elation they felt when they found a company that delivered on Sunday and snapped out of the sappy romantic haze she was in just a minute ago. "I still don't know how you got so lucky."

"Me neither."

"It's too bad you have to give up your office, though. Didn't you just get everything situated?"

"Yeah, but considering everything, I imagine that I'll have to find a bigger place in the near future anyway."

"Something tells me you don't mind all that much."

"You got me," he said, drawing her close and kissing her again before starting the rest of their day and realizing the double meaning in his admission.


	7. Chapter 7: Mother's Intuition

**Chapter 7: Mother's Intuition**

By the end of the week, Clark had settled into a routine that seemed to allow him to juggle Hannah, working at the Planet, and exploring the change in his relationship with Lois. After spending all of the last weekend together, they made the decision to not work in the evenings for a few days. As much as he _wanted_ to spend time with Lois, he didn't want her to think he was becoming too over-dependent on her presence when it came to taking care of Hannah. He needed to learn to anticipate and solve issues on his own.

He was sitting at his desk, typing up an article for the business section on the announcement of a new youth center in New Troy. Lois was on her way back from City Hall, according to the text she sent him just a couple minutes ago, and he was anxiously awaiting her return. After a week of waiting, he finally had some solid information from his mom in Washington about AmerTek that would allow their investigation to move forward.

When Lois walked into the bullpen, he was putting the finishing touches on his article. He looked up from his computer as she laid her purse on her desk and sat down, meeting her eyes and smiling brightly.

"What?" Lois said as she sat down at her desk and turned on her computer.

"Mom called. She had some information for us."

Lois bolted up with excitement and perched herself right in front of Clark on the edge of his desk. "Why didn't you say anything when you texted me earlier? We've been waiting for this all week."

"I wanted to tell you in person." For what he imagined was the hundredth time this week, he cursed himself for saying they shouldn't tell anyone about their relationship. He wanted so much to touch her right now, even if it was just a quick hand-hold. But, he reminded himself, they were in the wrong place for even something as innocuous as that right now.

"So, what's this big news?"

Clark stood up, grabbing her wrist and pulling her with him as they walked out of the bullpen and got on the elevator. Upon seeing that they were alone, though perhaps only briefly, he let his hand slide down from her wrist and took her hand.

"You haven't answered me, Clark."

"We're going to the Archive room. I don't want anyone to overhear what I have to tell you." The elevator dinged and the doors opened, causing Clark to quickly release Lois's hand. They walked into the darkened room and he pulled her over to a microfiche machine and loaded it up so that an old headline flashed across the screen. "This guy is the key."

Lois saw the headline from about three years ago and took note of where it appeared—page 23. No wonder she didn't recognize the name. "John Henry Irons: AmerTek Wonder Kid?"

"That's the one. According to this, he was their top weapons engineer." He changed the microfiche and scrolled through the roll until he found the article he was looking for. "He was developing a weapon called the BG-60 but left very abruptly. There," he said, pointing to a line in the business briefs from a year ago. He then put in yet another roll and scrolled again. "No one heard from him until a few months ago, when the Iron Works opened."

"Wait, you mean this guy is here in Metropolis?"

"He is. The trick now is going to be getting this guy to talk to us."

Lois ignored his last sentence, choosing to focus on the fact that not only did they have a hot lead, but it was practically in their back yard. She lunged forward, wrapping her arms around his neck in appreciation. In a matter of seconds, Lois recognized their close proximity and brought her head out of his shoulder to look at his surprised, yet smiling, face.

"Do you realize this is the first time we've been alone all week?" he asked her, trying desperately to keep his voice low and even.

"I do. Is there any more news you need to tell me about this lead?"

"No, that's pretty much all I had."

"In that case, I think we need to take advantage of this alone time," she said as she lifted a hand to play with the hair on the back of his neck. Her smile got wider as she watched his eyes flutter closed, causing her to pause for a brief second to take in his beautiful face before dipping her head so that her lips met his.

Clark responded immediately, his mind briefly recognizing that she was the instigator before he turned his attention completely to her. His hands moved to her waist, pulling her closer and deepening the kiss. Instinctively he backed her toward the wall, only to find shelving in its place.

"Ah," Lois exclaimed. She caught his eyes, not the slightest bit annoyed. Instead, she smiled. "Note for the future, Smallville. The shelving in here isn't very forgiving."

He smiled, happy that she wasn't mad at him. He kissed her again but pulled back to look at her when her words finally registered. "The future, huh?"

"It's a good cover, that's for sure," she smirked back, her hand slowly moving from his neck to cup his cheek. "Copy and supply rooms are too conspicuous. But the Archive Room? That's ingenious, Smallville."

"I didn't actually bring you down here for a make out session."

"You're not complaining, either," she volleyed back. This level of bantering was something new for them. Sure they bantered before, but this week—and especially right now—all their interactions were heightened. She wasn't complaining. On the contrary, she couldn't stop smiling.

"Kill me if I ever do."

Clark leaned forward and kissed her again, causing her to lose whatever retort she was planning. She felt his hands move to the small of her back, putting them between her and the shelving, before pressing closer to her and coaxing her mouth open to touch his tongue to hers.

All coherent thought was threatening to leave her. His hands were caressing her lower back and expertly only playing with the hem of her shirt, almost as if by accident. Part of her wanted to scream that it was too much, too soon. But what it came down to was that Clark was making her feel things right now that she was previously convinced didn't exist in her world.

A phone buzzed, causing them both to jump apart and briefly catch each other's eyes before Clark reached in his pocket for the offending item. "It's mine," he told her breathlessly. A quick glance at the screen, and he looked at her again. "It's my mom."

Lois released him and he walked away just a few steps. She noticed how he tried to sound normal when he answered the phone.

"Mom. Hi…No, I don't think so…Everything's fine…it's uh…" Clark hesitated, shooting a glance toward Lois, "a new experience every day…yeah, we're getting into a routine…Really?" another look to Lois. "As far as I know…I think that will work…Ok, I'll see you next week. Love you, Mom. Bye."

Clark closed his phone and put it back in his pocket, his shoulders slumping slightly. He took a deep breath and turned away from Lois, busying himself with replacing the microfilm rolls they used.

"Clark? Is everything okay?"

"Yes," he replied curtly.

"Do you always sound that excited after your mom calls?" She walked up behind him, grabbing his arms and forcing him to stop what he was doing and look at her.

"She's coming to visit next weekend. She wants to make sure that I have everything under control with Hannah."

"You don't sound too thrilled. I thought you were close to your mom."

"I was…I mean, I am. She just made it sound like she didn't have confidence in me."

"Would you rather she ignored you?" When he shook his head, Lois took him by the hand and sat them in a couple chairs across from the microfiche machine. "Look, it doesn't matter how old you are. Your mom is always going to worry about you and want to make sure you're happy. Consider yourself lucky, Clark. My mom died when I was eight and the General was too busy saving the country to pull double-duty when it came to parenting."

"I'm sorry, Lois."

"It's OK. But that brings up another point." She pulled him close, framing his face in her hands and making him look at her directly. "Your mom is Hannah's grandma. She probably expected it about as much as you did. Cut her some slack, Smallville. She might just be looking for a reason to start spoiling her granddaughter."

"You're right."

"Of course I am." Lois grabbed his hand and stood him up, giving him a hug before helping him finish putting away the microfilm. Before they exited the room, she gave him a quick kiss and squeezed his hand. "Come on, we better get back to work before someone thinks we were down here making out or something."

When Lois reached out blindly for her phone when it rang, she caught a glimpse of her alarm clock: 1 a.m. Through blurry eyes she saw the caller ID and snapped open her phone. "Clark? What's wrong?"

"_Lois,"_ Clark said frantically through the phone. Lois heard crying in the background, and immediately shot up, wide awake and worried for both Hannah and Clark. _"I can't get her to stop crying. I tried everything—changing her diaper, feeding her, and rocking her—and nothing works. I thought about taking her to the emergency room, but…"_

"Whoa, Clark. Slow down." She heard him breathing heavily, shushing and pleading with Hannah. "Clark. I need you to get a hold of yourself and listen to me."

"_OK."_

Clark's voice was calmer and his breathing becoming steady. "Did the daycare say anything about her not feeling well when you picked her up tonight?"

"_No, nothing at all. They were too busy gushing about what a beautiful baby she is." _He was quiet for a moment, and then added, _"Lois, I'm scared."_

"That's to be expected." Lois moved around her room, gathering up some clothes and taking a deep breath. "Listen, I'm on my way over. But until I get there, take a washcloth and run it under some cold water, and then let her suck on it. I'll be there in about 15 minutes."

Lois hung up the phone and dressed quickly, grabbing a couple items as she nearly sprinted toward the door and locked it behind her. She had a good idea what was wrong with Hannah. And truth be told, she was just as worried about Clark as she was about the baby. He was doing so well adjusting, she told herself, but not being able to calm his daughter had definitely sent him into a frenzy. It was the first time, since Hannah showed up on his doorstep, that she had seen him at a loss on what to do.

The fact that their situation was starting to look a lot more like they were playing house was not lost on Lois; she was acutely aware of it. The old Lois—the college student without a care in the world—would have bolted at the first sign of a guy with Clark's baggage. Even as a divorced mother of a five-year-old, she was initially hesitant to get involved. She had since admitted to Clark that she had feelings for him, but he didn't need to know—at least not yet—just how maternal her thoughts were toward Hannah.

She knocked on Clark's door 20 minutes later. He opened the door immediately, cradling a still fussy Hannah and a wet washcloth. "How long has she been like this?"

"About an hour, I suppose," Clark told her as he followed her into the kitchen and watched her move quietly and smoothly around his kitchen. "When she didn't stop crying after I changed her and tried to feed her, I called you."

Lois filled a large bowl with ice and water, then pulled some chamomile tea bags out of her purse and started to soak them in the water. Without a word, she reached for the washcloth and laid it in the bowl of ice water.

"Lois, do you mind telling me what's going on?"

She turned around once the cloth was in the water and reached for Hannah. When Clark didn't hand her over immediately, Lois sighed and moved closer. "Take a breather, Smallville."

Clark relinquished Hannah to Lois, despite her not yet answering his question. "Lois, please." Hannah's cries immediately slowed and she burrowed herself into Lois's waiting arms. "How do you do that?"

"Do what?" Lois turned around and retrieved the washcloth from the bowl, squeezing out the excess and gently putting it up to Hannah's waiting mouth. His eyes bored into hers, again asking the question he voiced upon her entrance to his apartment. "She's teething, Clark."

An 'oh' crossed Clark's expression. "What's with the tea?"

"Chamomile has a natural calming effect. The cold water is to help numb her mouth. The texture of the cloth helps, too.

"How do you know all this?"

Hannah interrupted the conversation with a short wail. Without missing a beat, Lois ignored Clark's question and took the washcloth, touching it lightly to the baby's forehead and running it down her cheek before letting her suck on it once more.

The sound of Hannah's cries quieted, and Lois walked over to Clark, who was standing on the other side of the kitchen looking like he'd just been run over by a truck. Lois held Hannah in one arm and walked over to Clark, holding his tired gaze and speaking softly. "She'll be fine, honey. I promise."

Once the words were out of her mouth, she immediately regretted them. Never in her life had she called someone "honey," not even DJ. The surprise she felt in so easily using such an intimate endearment for him made her back away from him slightly, honestly praying that he wouldn't notice and let them move on as if her slip never happened.

As they both stood quietly, each seemingly regarding the other, Lois realized that it wasn't so much that she didn't feel the sentiment behind the endearment, but that using it put her in territory that was totally and completely unchartered. Using such a term opened herself up more than she ever had before, whether it was her father, past boyfriends, David, or DJ. Calling Clark "honey" put him in a category all by himself. She was both frightened and exhilarated.

Clark nodded, exhaustion starting to take over. He was willing to accept her promise without an argument, her experience being exponentially greater than his. His eyes closed, taking in the soothing feel of her hand moving down his forearm and intertwining their hands.

Lois leaned into him, confident that he didn't acknowledge her slip-up, and their hands connected and Hannah finally starting to settle between them. With her head resting on his chest, she could feel the pounding and racing of his heart. She related immediately, remembering the first time DJ cried incessantly because he was teething. "You were really scared, weren't you?"

"Terrified."

"And now?"

"I'm less terrified, but still worried."

Lois lifted her head off his chest and started to walk, pulling him with her. "Come on."

They walked down the hallway, causing Clark some confusion when they walked past Hannah's room and continued back toward his room. When they entered, Lois released his hand and walked to the far side of the bed, leaving him standing next to the door. "Lois?" he asked simply.

"You're not the only one who freaked out, Clark. Hannah was—and probably still is—just as scared. She needs to be reassured that someone will be there if she starts hurting again." She gently laid an almost-asleep Hannah on his bed then climbed on behind her. "David and I used to do this when—" She cut herself off, looking at Clark and silently apologizing for bringing up her ex-husband.

Clark sat down on the bed and urged her to continue. "What did you and David do?"

"When DJ started teething and crying like this," she resumed, shifting into a seating position and reaching for a pillow. "David and I lay him between us after we got him settled down and let him sleep in here with us for the rest of the night."

Clark looked away, suddenly fixated on the sheets of his bed. His mind struggled to form a response as unwanted jealousy started to flare in the pit of his stomach.

"Clark, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought it up. I'll take my foot out of my mouth now."

"No," he responded, his eyes meeting hers once again. "It makes perfect sense. I was just caught a little off guard, that's all." He swung his legs onto the bed, laying down and positioning a pillow underneath his head. "I have a hard time picturing you married to him."

"Sometimes, I do too," she answered as she lay down opposite from him, Hannah now sound asleep in between them. "I don't suppose it makes any sense that the reasons I married him are the same reasons I divorced him."

"It makes sense. I'm starting to see first hand just how much being a parent can change a person."

"I can see it in you already," Lois whispered, her hand reaching across the mattress to find his. "I don't know anyone who would have been so readily accepting of the situation."

Clark remembered her insistence the night Hannah showed up on his doorstep that he have a paternity test done, and how she questioned his instant belief—with no more than a letter from his ex-girlfriend—that Hannah was his daughter. It brought to mind the phone call he received on his way to the daycare earlier in the evening. "The results to the DNA test came in."

Lois faintly smiled, acknowledging without words what she had already accepted: Clark was Hannah's father. She didn't need to ask for the results; she already knew. "Your faith amazes me."

"I have faith in us, too."

His declaration caught her by surprise, causing her to break eye contact. Why did he always have to say things like that? Every time she starts to adjust to their new status quo, he goes and ups the ante and blows whatever game plan she might have had out of the water. It was frustrating, but exhilarating at the same time. It had been a long time since someone over the age of five had that much faith in her. "I want to," she whispered, unable to look him directly in the eye.

"You do, Lois."

"Yeah? What makes you so sure?"

"In the kitchen…you called me 'honey.'"

Lois's eyes shot up in surprise, remembering that she had in fact used that particular term of endearment. "Damn. I thought I slipped that one past you."

"Nice try. Mad Dog Lane uses a mushy term of endearment and I'm supposed to act like it didn't happen?

"Repeat it and I'll deny it to my grave, Smallville. And then I'll send you to yours."

"Fine, but the fact that you used it at all proves to me that you believe in us. You're scared, and that's understandable. But you haven't run away either. In fact, you've done the exact opposite. I'm just glad you're giving it a chance."

"I've never called anyone that before," she whispered, her tone once again serious. "Not ever. It always felt fake. But with you, I didn't even think about it. I just knew that you needed to be comforted and that's what came out of my mouth."

Clark leaned forward, adjusting his body carefully to lean over Hannah without disturbing her. Cupping Lois's chin, he leaned forward and kissed her quickly and lightly, breathing a "thank you" onto her lips before returning to his previous position.

Lois shifted her gaze from Clark to a sleeping Hannah and got lost in her thoughts. She lightly brushed her hand across the top of Hannah's forehead and smiled shyly as she realized Clark was watching her. "I wonder how many generations of Kents have looked that adorable when they slept."

"No more than two, I imagine."

"Your father's rolling around in his grave right now."

"That's not it, Lois," he said, his voice unapologetic. "I'm sure Dad—and his father before him—was cute as a baby, but I look nothing like them."

Lois tilted her head, thoroughly interested in the direction this conversation was going. This is what she felt like she was missing: time where they could talk without feeling like they were taking all their skeletons out of the closet. It was almost funny that it took a new-parent emergency for it to happen.

When she didn't respond, Clark continued. "Mom and Dad adopted me when I was a baby. I never met my biological parents."

"Never? Didn't you ever try to find them?"

"No, not once. Mom and Dad gave me everything I ever needed, so I never felt like I was missing out on that biological relationship. For one reason or another, my real parents didn't want me. I didn't need any other explanation. I remember a time when I was about nine or ten when I used to imagine that they gave me up in order to save the world, but that theory grew old very quickly."

Clark watched as Lois's eyes started to drift shut, only to have her push them back open. It was the fourth or fifth time he'd spotted her doing it in the last five minutes, and he was feeling increasingly guilty that he was keeping her awake with boring stories of his childhood. "You're tired."

"No," she argued, even as her eyes flew open once again. "I like this…just talking."

"Me too, but you can't keep your eyes open. The crisis has been averted, so you should just close your eyes and sleep. We can talk in the morning over breakfast."

"Mmkay," Lois slurred, her eyes falling closed as she snuggled into her half of the bed. Her breathing evened out in record time, leaving Clark to watch his two favorite girls sleep before he fell into his own peaceful slumber.


	8. Chapter 8: Mothers and Children

A/N: Just a friendly reminder that in this AU, Clark doesn't have powers. It's not a situation where he's still from Krypton but has permanently lost his powers. He never had them.

**Chapter 8: Mothers and Children**

Clark sat at the table feeding Hannah while Lois frantically moved around her apartment. "Lois, calm down. He's only been gone for two weeks."

"Exactly," she said, coming into view from the hallway. "DJ's going to come home and have his favorite sheets on his bed, his favorite ice cream in the freezer, and his favorite toys visible in that hole he sometimes calls a bedroom."

Lois disappeared down the hallway again, and Clark could hear an indecipherable banging follow. He got up to follow her and was reprimanded with a short complaint from Hannah when her bottle briefly came out of her mouth. He replaced it, muttering a small "sorry" to her as she resumed sucking on the bottle, and curiously walked toward the commotion coming from DJ's room.

Upon entering the doorway, he was surprised to find that his room wasn't messy at all. He noticed that she _had_ changed his sheets, but now she was standing with her back to him staring at a picture he had on his desk. As he walked closer to her, he realized that she was completely entranced, almost as if she was under the spell of the picture.

"I worry about the day he doesn't need me anymore." Lois's voice was soft and full of contemplation. "Less than two months ago, this frame had a picture of the three of us—a family. I never realized DJ changed the picture."

Clark stood behind her, getting as close as possible while still feeding Hannah. Since his hands were occupied, he leaned down and rested his head at the juncture of her neck and shoulder, turning his head to place a kiss there. "He's five, Lois. Don't worry too much yet."

Lois sighed heavily, knowing there was truth in his words. More than anything, she was reacting to the way DJ had unknowingly removed David from his life in the manner of 'out of sight, out of mind.' If for some reason the roles were reversed and Lois was the parent he didn't see every day, would her picture be removed?

"You know," Clark started tentatively, not liking her silence because he'd learned that it was never good, "I seem to remember someone reminding me just a few days ago that a boy always needs his mother, no matter how old he is."

His words jolting her, Lois turned in his arm and smirked. "Shame on you, Clark Kent."

"What?"

"I was warming up for a full-on brood and you killed it." To show him she was only joking, she smiled again, this time without the devious snarl, and punched him on the shoulder that wasn't supporting Hannah.

Returning her smile, Clark took her hand and directed her over to DJ's bed, his eyes diverting back as he caught her quickly, using his other hand to grab the frame that contained the picture that had caused her worry in the first place. He was quickly learning that opportunities to give Lois Lane advice were few and far between, which made this conversation all the more appealing to him.

He pulled a burp rag out of his back pocket before sitting down next to her. Hannah wailed for only a few seconds until he shifted her position so that she was over his shoulder and started patting her on the back in an effort to burp her.

"You're getting good at that," Lois offered.

"Thanks. But you're not getting off that easy, Lane."

Dejectedly, Lois turned her eyes to the framed picture in her hands. It was taken a couple months ago, when she had taken DJ to a water park for a couple days of relaxation. The outing was the first time they had done anything since her divorce became final, and she herself had fond memories of the time they spent together.

"I hope your attitude right now doesn't have anything to do with my reaction to _my _mom calling the other day." He really hoped it didn't. Even as the words left his mouth, Clark prayed that the reason she was feeling this way wasn't because he was less than enthused when his mother called. "Because despite the way I acted, which was childish, I'm happy she's coming. In fact, I'm happy any time I get to see her."

"That's not it, Clark." Truth be told, she didn't know why she was reacting the way she was. This wasn't the first time she'd noticed a change in DJ as a result of the divorce. Even before he left for vacation, she could tell that DJ's relationship with David was deteriorating. It was why she was so agreeable that they go on a trip together—just the boys. But when she saw that picture and how David had so easily—and quietly—been dropped, she couldn't help but wonder if the situation would be reversed if David managed to take DJ away from her.

"I don't read minds, Lois." He shifted on the bed so he was facing her, concern evident on his face. "Talk to me."

"He doesn't realize what he's doing. DJ, that is. He doesn't understand that despite the fact that I'm not with his father anymore, that David is still a major part of his life. But he…changing this picture made me think about how easily he could forget about me should David end up taking him away from me."

"He won't do that."

"And what makes you so sure?" She had expected to see at least a hint of teasing in his face, but there was none. On the contrary, he looked as serious as she'd ever seen him.

"I won't let it happen. Simple as that."

"That's funny, Clark." She was laughing, enjoying the protective tone in his voice and yet not fully believing that he could follow through with his promise. "Do you have some super power or something that I should know about?"

"You would just love that, wouldn't you?" Clark laughed at the absurdity of her suggestion, himself unable to fathom such an idea. "I think you would try to exploit me for your own personal gain."

"That wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing," Lois replied, leaning forward and smiling into his lips. As she leaned back, she saw the severe look return to his face and found she was still curious as to how he could single-handedly prevent David from taking DJ from her. "Seriously, though. How does mild-mannered reporter Clark Kent intend on subduing my shifty ex-husband?"

"_We,_" he started, making sure to emphasize the word, "just have to be careful not to give him a reason. If his main complaint is that you take too many chances then don't take any. If we play this the safe way, you have nothing to worry about."

Lois opened her mouth to respond, only to be interrupted by the sound of a large burp from Hannah. Any words she had on the matter fled her mind, especially when Clark held Hannah in front on him and they both witnessed the large smile on the baby's face, as if she were proud of her accomplishment. Caught up in the moment, Lois leaned in to rest her head on Clark's shoulder.

Then, the smell of regurgitated baby formula made her sit up quickly to investigate the source of the smell. She found that Hannah was in fact a good burper, so much so that she overshot the towel on Clark's shoulder and used the back of his shirt instead.

"Clark, your daughter just christened your shirt," she laughed, reaching for the towel and trying to find a way to clean it off without making the situation worse.

"No wonder she looks so proud of herself."

Lois stood up in front of him, holding out her hands expectantly. "OK, give her here and then take off your shirt."

Clark looked up and met her eyes, surprised at the words that just passed her lips. And then, just as quickly, he regrouped and realized the reason she made the request. God help him, but he wished her reason for saying it was completely different. He handed Hannah to her, and with his cheeks reddening, he stood and started to unbutton his shirt, unable to look directly at her.

His attention to the buttons was so diverted that he fumbled with them many times before finally undoing the last one. He could feel her eyes on him, doing what they did best. Studying. Investigating. He shrugged out of the shirt, finally meeting her scrutinizing eyes as he held the item out in front of her.

Lois took the shirt from him but stood still, having forgotten exactly why she needed the shirt in the first place. She had known for a couple weeks, of course, that things were changing between them. Her hesitancy fled quickly, and she could tell that her feelings were getting stronger for Clark. But right then, as he stood there in nothing but a pair of pants and a t-shirt, she felt the strongest outburst of lust she had ever felt in her life. Ever. And of course, she couldn't do anything about it, especially when the baby in her arms continued to remind her that she was still awake.

"I'll uh," she started, trying desperately to regain her composure. "I'll soak this in the sink before it starts to stain." She turned and walked out of DJ's room and into the kitchen, leaving Clark wondering what had just happened.

All it took him was a few deep breaths to regain full brain function. He started to walk down the hall, intent on meeting Lois in the kitchen, when he heard the door bell ring.

"Could you get that, Clark? My hands are all soapy."

"Got it," he told her, staying in the hallway and heading for the door instead of turning into the kitchen. He opened the door, and before he could comprehend who was standing in front of him, DJ practically flew into his arms.

Clark returned DJ's hug, but quickly diverted his attention to David standing in the doorway. He was certain Lois was under the impression that they weren't returning until tomorrow night, which meant…

"This is quite a surprise," David said, his eyes boring into Clark's.

"That makes three of us. Lois isn't expecting you back until tomorrow." He stood up fully, extracting DJ from the hold the boy had on him, and matching David's stare.

David opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by another voice coming into the hallway from the kitchen. "Clark, I hung your shirt up. It should be dry—"

Lois appeared in the hallway, holding Hannah. Upon seeing David and DJ standing in the entranceway with Clark, she immediately wished she'd left Hannah in her car seat in the kitchen, especially since she wasn't crying or being fussy. Now, she knew she was going to have to answer a litany of questions.

The questions, however, were put on hold when DJ noticed him mother's presence and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Mom!"

"Hey, baby. Did you have a good time with your dad?" Without having to ask, Clark almost immediately held out his arms and took Hannah, allowing her to pick up DJ and give him her full attention. She reached down and picked him up, making an exaggerated moan as she did. "Is it just me or did you get bigger?"

"Maybe you just got used to holding something lighter while he was gone."

The smile fell from her face and she snarled at David for his comment. She put down DJ, knowing the questions were about to come. "DJ, why don't you go unpack everything and put your clothes in a nice pile so we can do your laundry later?"

Thankfully, he started to pull his suitcase down the hall toward his bedroom, taking full advantage of the wheels. She watched him turn the corner and listened as he shut the door, and returned to look at David. She also noticed that Clark hadn't moved a step since she handed Hannah over to him, and she contemplated whether or not she wanted him to hear the conversation—or shouting match—she was about to have with her ex-husband. In the end, she decided to let him stay for the time being, knowing that he was involved in said conversation.

"Okay, let's hear it."

"I don't even know where to start."

"You're such a liar." Lois knew damn well where he wanted to start. In fact, she knew David was putting on a show because Clark was there. But she wasn't going to tolerate it. "I think this is the part of the show where you start condemning me before you even know the story."

"There's always a story with you, isn't there, Lois?"

Lois's eyes briefly darted to Clark, who was watching with rapt attention. "I never heard you complain when telling stories got me no less than three raises in less than a year."

"How could I complain? You were never home to hear them! There was always some hot news story, some new crusade that you felt compelled to lead. Never mind that you had a husband and a young son at home who needed you just as much."

Lois tried not to laugh. As angry as she was, she couldn't help but see the humor in this whole situation. If there was one thing David was good at, it was making Lois look like a bad person—and a bad mom—in front of other people. He would manipulate and exaggerate the truth so that it suited his purpose, which was usually to beat Lois down mentally until she couldn't take it anymore.

But with Clark here and watching the whole thing, she was determined to make sure David didn't make Lois out to be the only guilty party in their divorce. She took an extra moment to calm herself, as she was about to yell again, and she realized that doing so would only make things worse all around. "Are there times I wish I was home more? Of course, David. But I never intentionally neglected you or DJ. And, I might add, I was _always_ the one to take him to and pick him up from day care, even when it would have been easier for you to do so."

David put his head down and examined his shoes briefly, and Lois thought maybe she had won this round. But then he looked back up at her, and she could tell that he was just gearing up for his next line of questioning. "So, what's up with your boyfriend and the baby? Are you trying to make up for all the mistakes you made with DJ?"

"You son of a—" Lois yelled, wanting to object to so much in his accusation but not being able to overlook the last part.

"Lois," Clark warned, stepping forward and holding out a free arm to keep her from getting any closer to David. He then surprised her when he turned and spoke to her ex-husband in a calm voice. "To answer your question, she's helping out a friend. She's not my girlfriend. We're partners at work and friends and we were working tonight because _you_ weren't supposed to bring DJ back until tomorrow."

David opened his mouth to speak but Lois interrupted him. "Yeah, why are you home early anyway? And why didn't you think to give me the courtesy of letting me know?"

"He was homesick," David replied, his voice softer and more civil. "All DJ could talk about for the last three days was coming home and seeing you. And since he was so eager, we got on a plane this morning and came home."

"Oh." She couldn't fault him much for that, she supposed. If the shoe was on the other foot, she probably would have done the same thing.

"I meant to call, but we left early this morning and I figured you weren't awake yet. And then by the time we got off the plane, it was practically a moot point."

Lois nodded, not knowing if there was much more to say. They had the obligatory blow-out, which was fine (she was used to it), and now she just wanted to get him out of the apartment and spend some time with her son now that he was home. She felt a hand on her arm and saw that Clark was gesturing to her, motioning that he would be in the kitchen with Hannah.

Thankful for the moment of privacy, she jumped at the chance to admonish David before he left. "Was that show really necessary?" She kept her voice steady, not wanting to have a repeat performance of earlier.

"You have to admit that you looked awfully cozy when we got here. What was I supposed to think?"

"See, there's this thing called _tact_. You might have heard of it. It would be nice of you to learn how to use it." She paused, choosing her next words carefully. She and Clark weren't advertising their relationship, especially not to David, and she needed to make sure she didn't shoot herself in the foot. "Clark's going to be around. He's my partner, my friend, and he could use the support right now."

"That's fine," David said, turning and opening the door. "Whatever it is, I hope you take into consideration how it's going to affect DJ."

He left immediately, not giving Lois a chance to reply.

After the awkward scene in the entranceway, Lois had to convince Clark not to go home immediately. He thought that she needed time with DJ and that he (and Hannah) would only be in the way, but she pulled him aside and quietly pleaded with him to stay. It was her pleading that convinced him that her argument with David had frazzled her more than she was letting on, so he decided to stay in hopes that she would eventually have the chance to open up to him about it.

They spent the rest of the evening trying to pry details about his trip out of DJ. Unfortunately, he was too taken by Hannah to share much. It was only after the baby got fussy and Clark changed and rocked her to sleep that DJ finally shared with Lois what he and David did in Florida, and by that time, he was fighting sleep so much after the long day that Lois took pity on him and helped him to bed.

Clark waited for her to return, knowing that if they were going to talk about what happened earlier, this was probably their only opportunity. Tomorrow they would have work and two kids to consider, and their personal lives would again take a back seat.

He heard the door to DJ's room close and saw Lois walk slowly down the hall into the living room where he sat on the couch. Their eyes met, and Lois stood still as she ran her hands over her face and through her hair. She was mentally and emotionally exhausted. Her eyes opened slowly to find his, and he held out a hand so she would join him.

Lois sat down on the couch, leaning over and resting her head on his chest as her hand wove around his waist. She wasted no time. "I'm sorry you had to see that."

"I have to admit, I though you were exaggerating when you said he was ruthless."

"Not so much." She burrowed into his embrace more, and Clark tried to comfort her by gently running his hand up and down her back.

He could feel the tension on her. It was draining her, and he hated it. He searched his mind, trying to decide how exactly to make her feel better and put this particular incident behind her, knowing that it would continue to eat at her if she didn't.

"He has the worst timing in the world."

"It could have been worse."

Lois leaned up at looked at him curiously. "How so?"

Clark didn't respond, but looked at her knowingly. When she shook her head in confusion, he brought his hand up to her waist, taking hold and bringing her closer so she was almost flush against him. "He could have walked in while I was doing this," he whispered, bringing his lips down to hers.

Lois smiled against his lips as she returned his kiss. She pulled back to look at him and smiled, his meaning finally dawning on her. "You're right, it could have been _much_ worse. Thank God for locks and door bells."

Clark agreed, and they fell into a companionable silence. He was amazed at how different her demeanor was just by giving her a kiss; it made his ego skyrocket, knowing he could affect her in that way. He relaxed back into the couch as Lois laid her head back down on his chest and let out a deep sigh.

"Clark?"

"Yeah?" he answered, her voice startling him. He quickly realized that he was almost asleep and sat up on the couch slightly.

"Do you think we're moving too fast? I mean, you have Hannah and I have DJ and we both have all this baggage."

Clark could see the worry in her eyes. "Okay," he started, sitting up completely on the couch and moving so he was looking at her straight on. "I knew this conversation was coming, I just didn't expect it to come out this way."

"And what way did you expect?"

"The 'I'm Lois Lane and how dare you question my intentions' way."

"Oh," she said quietly, her eyes finding where their hands were joined in the space between them. She lifted their hands and looked at them, almost reverently. "I don't know what it is about you, Smallville. I just…I feel like I can be myself around you. I don't have to be the hard-nosed journalist or the scorned ex-wife. I can be—"

"Extraordinary," Clark finished for her.

"I don't know about that."

"I do." He copied her motion from earlier, lifting their joined hands in front of them, but then covered them with his other hand before raising it to his lips and kissing her fingers slowly and gently.

"I'm going to take a wild guess and say your answer to my question is 'no.'"

"And you would be correct." He pulled her closer, so they were almost in the same position as earlier, and took in her scent as he rested his chin on her shoulders. Contemplating his next words, he finally let himself acknowledge what had been going through his head the last couple weeks. David Vega was a jack-ass and he'd done a real number on Lois. This ongoing belief that she didn't deserve to be happy was her ex's doing, he was sure of it. And if it was the last thing he did, Clark was going to make sure she never felt that way again. "Listen, I know it's not an ideal situation. But the last thing we should do is let all our baggage weigh us down. I know it's going to be tough, but I'm willing to work on it."

"Me too. I was thrown off by David bringing back DJ a day early and what he saw when I came to the door. It made me think about us only being together for a few weeks and how domestic the whole scene must have looked to him."

"Maybe he was just jealous of what he lost."

Lois scoffed at his suggestion. "Not likely." She thought for a moment and remembered something he'd said to David. "I never thought you would be the one denying our…whatever this is."

"I didn't want to."

"I know." She hesitated, not entirely sure she wanted to ask the question. She took a deep breath, and asked anyway. "Were you lying when you said it?"

"What do you mean?"

"You told David you weren't my boyfriend. Were you lying?"

Clark looked at her curiously, wondering why she was bringing up a subject they had agreed not to discuss or dwell on. "Where's all this coming from?" he deflected.

"I…" she started hesitantly. His avoidance of her question was beginning to make her second-guess her reasoning, but she continued, hoping that he was just startled. "I know we decided not to label it, but I think we have to now."

"Why's that?"

"Really, Clark. We're together even when we don't have to be. Our nights working hardly ever involve working anymore. And we get more mileage out of the Archive Room than our staff historian. I think we have to face the fact that we're dating."

"Accompanying me to the Department of Child and Family Services hardly counts as a date, Lois. In fact, I have yet to take you on a real date."

"Okay, so we're seeing each other. It's practically the same thing." She thought for a moment then continued. "Let me ask you this, then. How would you introduce me to your mother?"

He thought about that, not exactly sure _how_ he would introduce her. Lois was his partner at work, a good friend…but she was more than that. And if there was one person he didn't want to keep the truth from, it would be his mother. At that realization, he looked Lois in the eye and said confidently, "I'd introduce you as my girlfriend."

Lois smiled and elevated herself to give him a quick kiss. "Then I'm your girlfriend, even if we're the only ones who know it."

They fell into silence again, and Clark thought about bringing up the topic that had been on his mind all night. Considering the events of the evening, he was unsure how she would feel about it, but he had to give it a try. "You know, Mom's going to be here this weekend," he reminded her.

"Yeah, I bet you're excited. How long has it been since you've seen her?"

"Four months, but we talk regularly." Clark took a deep breath. "I'd really love it if you and DJ would join us for dinner Saturday night."

Lois's head shot up in surprise. "What?"

"Dinner. Saturday night. You, me, my mom, and DJ."

Upon hearing his confirmation of the request she _thought_ she initially heard leave his lips, Lois sat up completely and moved away from his embrace. "I don't think that's such a good idea."

"Why not? My mom would love you…and DJ."

"Or, she could wonder why her only son is tangled up in a relationship with a reporter who's barely holding on to custody of her own son. Martha Kent is famous in Washington for being a model mother, Clark. I can't compete with that."

"No one's asking you to, Lois. I want Mom to meet you because you mean a lot to me, and she deserves to see that."

Lois had a reply ready, but paused when she realized what Clark had admitted to her. She redirected the discussion to find out what he meant. "I mean a lot to you?"

"Yes. You _and_ DJ." He reached out and took her hand again, his eyes never leaving hers. "Just think about it, OK? We can talk about it more on Friday."

Lois simply nodded, not trusting her voice to say what she was thinking. Because the truth was, she wanted nothing more than to share dinner with him and his mother. But as much as she wanted to, she couldn't shake the feeling that the evening would be a disaster, probably of her own making.


	9. Chapter 9: Guess Who's Coming

This is, by far, the longest chapter I've written for this story. I slaved over trying to get Martha just right, while keeping in mind that her character might be slightly different in this AU. Hope I did her justice.

**Chapter 9: Guess Who's Coming to (and Making) Dinner  
**

Clark watched as Lois walked toward the table he'd gotten for them at the coffee shop. By the look on her face, he could tell that her fourth attempt at getting John Henry Irons to speak to her about AmerTek Industries didn't go well.

"No luck?"

Lois sat down and huffed out a breath, brushing her hair off her face and taking a thankful sip of the coffee Clark must have ordered for her. "None. The minute I mentioned AmerTek he didn't want anything to do with me. He walked out of his office and left me sitting there for five minutes before some girl walked in and told me her Uncle John wouldn't be coming back, so I might as well leave."

Clark sat back in his chair, trying to think of a way to get this guy to talk to them. He was important. Extremely important. Copies of government contracts only gave so much information, and they needed to know why this particular one was terminated in such a quick fashion and what—if any—connection it had to these Toastmasters that were popping up all over town. He had a strong feeling that John Henry Irons knew the answers to all these questions. They just needed to get him to talk to them so they could convince him that they were trying to help.

"Clark, we can't do this without his cooperation." The concern on her face was obvious, and it was jarring to see her that vulnerable in a professional capacity.

"I know." He was searching his mind, searching everything he knew about Irons and his past with AmerTek, for a possible solution to their problem. "We still need Irons, but maybe we can try to contract some other former employees. They might be more willing to talk."

"Maybe," Lois said in a distracted voice. "I just feel like we're running out of time. If we don't get something more solid to go on soon, our chance to blow this out of the water is going to be gone."

"Let's not give up just yet. Why don't you let me take a crack at Irons on Monday? Maybe I can back him into talking to me about AmerTek, you know, talk about his transition from there to starting his own company. I could even write a legitimate article about it, just so I'm not totally deceiving him."

Lois brightened up at the suggestion. "Sure, and maybe you can do some research over the weekend and find out which Boy Scout troop he belonged to and what football team he cheers on Sundays."

"It couldn't hurt," he said, recognizing her sarcasm and throwing it back at her. "But I don't know how much work I'll do this weekend. I'm picking Mom up from the airport in a couple hours, remember?"

"Oh yeah," Lois replied, mentally chastising herself for giving him a way to bring up his proposition from a few days ago. She sat back in her chair, waiting for him to ask her again and trying to think of a plausible excuse.

"My invitation still stands, you know." His voice was calm and soothing, yet insistent at the same time.

"I know. My reasons for not wanting to are the same."

"I respectfully believe your reasons are a bunch of hogwash." He leaned forward, dropping his voice and making sure he made eye contact with her. "Listen, if it makes you feel any better, I'm worried that Mom is going to think that I'm rushing into this and that my only reason for doing so is because I don't want to raise Hannah alone."

His admission startled Lois. "It's not, is it?"

"God, no. In fact, I was going to talk to you about us anyway. Your reaction to Hannah only reinforced what I was already feeling."

Lois felt her cheeks reddening and had to resist the urge not to reach out and lay her hand on top of his on the table. She wanted to, but knowing that they were only a block from the Planet and that the place was crowded gave her pause and made her hold back her impulse. "You mean…that night you were gonna…?"

"I was going to ask you out…on a date. A real date. But when Hannah showed up, I had to amend my game plan."

"Oh," was all she could say, her voice failing her as she felt her heart rate climb. She felt herself getting lost in everything his admission implied, and she found that it gave her an insight into what he was feeling even before Hannah fell into their lives.

Clark lowered his voice and leaned forward in his seat slightly. "You took me by surprise, chewing me out one minute and sharing your deepest secrets the next. Throw in the playful banter and the fact that you actually volunteered to help with Hannah when most women would run the other way, and I was sold." He saw the surprised look come over her face as his admission and decided now was the perfect time to convince her how desperately he needed her there tomorrow night with his mother."The truth is, Lois," he said, his voice almost a whisper now. "I want Mom to _see_ that I'm happy, as opposed to her having to just believe what I say. That's why I want you and DJ there."

"But if DJ's there, we can't be ourselves. He doesn't know about us yet."

"He knows we're friends and co-workers. I'll tell Mom the situation. She'll understand that we're taking it slow because of him."

Lois saw the look on his face, a loving and supportive smile that told her he would not let her make a fool of herself. She wanted this to work…badly. She wanted the approval of Senator Kent—Clark's mother—when it came to dating her son. She sat back in her seat, sighed in defeat, and smiled. "Okay, you got me. What time should we be there?"

"Tomorrow night at six." He smiled and got up from his chair, trying to decide how best to say goodbye to her without raising too much suspicion. They were being overly cautious, he knew, but if nothing else, they needed to let the right people know before they publicly became a couple. And with the look Clark saw in David's eyes the other night, Clark knew that being seen having a private moment during the work day would be something David could possibly use to his advantage. In the end, Clark laid his hand on Lois's shoulder and brought got close to her ear before whispering, "I owe you a kiss." He stood back up and grabbed his coffee cup, re-establishing their professional rapport. "Mom's plane lands in less than two hours. Let me know if anything exciting happens today while I'm gone."

"No problem, Smallville."

Clark left the coffee shop, happy that he had convinced Lois to come to dinner and nervous about telling his mother that he was falling in love with his partner.

Gate 97 at Metropolis International Airport was busy on a Friday afternoon, especially since the incoming flight was from Washington, D.C. Clark stood at the gate, watching expectantly for his mother to walk through the tunnel. As nervous as he was to tell his mom about Lois, he really was excited to see her. They have always been close, so much that he felt like he could tell her just about anything. He knew his mom would have questions, but he tried to remind himself that she trusted him and supported the decisions he's made in the past.

Clark saw her walk through the gate and immediately started walking toward her. He wrapped her up in a huge hug, almost lifting her off her feet as she did so. "Hi, Mom." He pulled back and looked at her face, which was studying him as if to make sure he wasn't traumatized.

"Well, you certainly look healthy," she said, smiling as she reached down for the bag she dropped when Clark pulled her into a hug. Clark grabbed the bag before she could and they started to walk toward baggage claim.

"I'm fine, Mom. Really."

"Well, I had to come and see for myself. I wasn't exactly expecting that phone call saying I was a grandma. I just wish I could have been here sooner."

"I understand, Mom." He thought about his next words, knowing where the conversation was going to go if he said what was on his mind. He took a deep breath, glanced at his mom as she watched for her bags, and opened the proverbial can of worms. "Lois has been a great help, though. She was at my apartment when Hannah unexpectedly showed up and she made sure I had everything I needed."

"Lois? That's your partner at the paper, right? She's Chloe's cousin."

"Yeah," he said, not quite making eye contact with her. He waited for her reaction, knowing that it was only a few seconds away. 1…2…3…

"What aren't you telling me, Clark?"

He briefly considered denying everything. But he knew, especially since he had finally convinced Lois to come over for dinner the next night, he had no choice but to tell his mother exactly what was happening between him and his partner at work.

"Clark, I'm waiting."

"There, uh…might be more to it than that."

"Might be?"

"Okay, there is. We're seeing each other." He finally made eye contact with her, and watched as she exhaled slowly. "Is this where you say how disappointed you are in me?"

"Honestly, I can't decide how I feel about this right now. Your life is changing so much, Clark. Is it really smart for you to add a new girlfriend to the mix just as you're learning to be a father? Hannah has to come first, you know."

Clark recognized her bag as it came around—it was the same one she'd used since going to Washington—and grabbed it before they started walking again, this time toward his car. He tried to be as confident as possible, knowing that his mother would sense any doubt he had in his mind. "I know that. And so does Lois. She understands completely."

"Are you sure about that, Clark?" They reached the car and Clark put her bags in before opening the door for her and getting in himself. He didn't answer until they were pulling out onto the freeway.

"I am. She knows exactly what it's like to put someone else ahead of herself."

Martha didn't react right away, making Clark think that she hadn't caught on to what he was telling her. He had to admit that the conversation was going better than expected, but he still sensed some disapproval from her. "Mom?" he asked, trying to urge a response from her.

"I'm still processing here. Why didn't you tell me any of this before?"

"I didn't tell you because I was worried you would do exactly what you're doing now." His voice was strained, his frustration mounting that she couldn't be happy that he'd found someone in the middle of what could have easily been a horrendous situation. "I don't want to let you down, Mom. But I think I'm doing the best I can under the circumstances."

Martha sighed and laid her hand over Clark's. "Oh, honey, I'm sorry. I know I don't get to say it much, but I'm _very proud_ of you. I don't think you could ever let me down." She made eye contact with her son as he glanced over at her and smiled. "I just don't want you to get overwhelmed. A new job, a new city, and a new daughter would be more than enough for most people."

Clark thought about what life would be like if he was juggling all of the changes in his life without Lois around. Being in a new city wasn't a concern because he spent a semester in Gotham City, and that place was a nuthouse…literally. And he was holding his own at the Planet, even when he and Lois weren't working together. But the new daughter? He was pretty sure he would have been lost without Lois.

The more he considered his life right now though, the more he realized that Lois made everything better. Metropolis and the Daily Planet were more enjoyable because Lois was there. And sure, Lois was helping out with Hannah, but she had been stern with him from the very beginning that he needed to learn how to take care of his daughter. Lois instructed and gave suggestions, but never just did something for him because it was easier. It was her patience in those situations (and when dealing with DJ) that made him realize what a great person—and mother—she is.

He, of course, didn't know exactly how to vocalize all that to his mother. "My first day at the Planet, the day we met, she took me unexpectedly to her son's daycare." Clark spied a slightly surprised look on Martha's face, but continued before she could comment. "I had just met this obnoxious, arrogant, and bossy woman who was supposed to be my partner, and then she took me to the daycare—just so she could spend a few minutes with DJ—and she was like a completely different person. She was loving, gentle, and ready to move heaven and earth for him."

Martha didn't miss a beat, moving the conversation forward instead of asking for confirmation on Clark's latest bomb. "How old is her son?"

"He's five and just like his mother. In fact, I'd be hard-pressed to tell you one characteristic he got from his father."

"So you've met him? Lois's…" she drew out the sentence, not wanting to assume Lois's relationship with the boy's father.

"Ex-husband. They've been divorced for about 15 months. And yes, I've met him. He's generally a jack ass, but he's still very involved in DJ's life. They just got back from a vacation in Florida together."

Martha watched his face for any insecurities he might have about the whole situation, but surprisingly saw none. Her son had a determination about him that was nice to see. She remembered talking to him after his break-up with Kathleen, and how he almost didn't go to Gotham City in an attempt to make things better between the two of them. Martha had convinced him to go, telling her son that some distance might be good for them. If they were meant to be, then they would find their way back to each other.

Instead, she found that Clark had moved on and taken to building a family of his own. She didn't think he realized it yet, but he was talking like a guy who already had his future mapped out. He was talking like a guy who was certain about who he wanted to be with and what direction he wanted his life to go. And while she was apprehensive to being 100 percent supportive—someone had to play the devil's advocate—she was happy to see that he was working so hard at getting everything he deserved.

"I invited Lois and DJ over for supper tomorrow night."

Clark's words broke into Martha's thoughts and shook her. Sure, she was happy that he found someone, but wasn't it a little early for him to "bring her home to Mom?"

"Is that the best idea?" She tried not to sound disapproving, knowing that it would only upset Clark again. "I mean, you said you've only been dating for a few weeks."

"True. I know it sounds cheesy, but it feels like I've known her forever, Mom. We just…click. And I want you to truly see that I'm happy and that you don't have to worry about me." Clark pulled into Bayside Day Care and put the car in park. He didn't move though, as he waited for his mother's response.

Martha studied her son's face. The determination was still there. "You know I can't say 'no' when you look so sure of yourself."

"I am," he said simply. "One thing, though. DJ doesn't know yet that we're dating, so don't mention it. We're trying to ease him into the idea. You know, get him comfortable with it. That and we're not ready for her ex-husband to find out yet."

"It sounds like you and Lois have taken everything into consideration," Martha said as they started walking into the building.

"We both want this, Mom. It's going to take some work, but she's worth it."

"Well, then I guess I can't argue with that." Clark held the door for her and they walked into the building to meet her granddaughter for the first time. She had a feeling that everything was going to be just fine.

"When did you say they would be here?"

"Any time now," Clark said as he wiped his hands on the towel and walked over to the table to start setting it. "She texted me a few minutes ago to say they were on their way. DJ spilled some juice on his shirt so she had to find him something else to wear."

Just then the door bell rang and Clark looked to his mom before heading to the door. He opened it, and was almost bowled over as DJ jumped toward him and excitedly said, "Clark."

"Hey Buddy," Clark replied, taking DJ in his arms and briefly looking up to Lois, who was standing in the doorway and smiling. "Are you ready for school to start Monday?"

"Mom says we have to go shopping tomorrow," DJ told him matter-of-factly.

"That sounds fun." Clark laughed, seeing the look of horror come over Lois's face. Funnier though, was the almost identical look on DJ's face.

"Not really," DJ deadpanned. He stepped back from Clark and started to look past the hallway into the living room. "Is Hannah here?"

"She's in her crib in the living room, Buddy."

He was out of the room in a flash, and Clark directed his attention to Lois, taking her by the hand and closing the door behind her. He pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissing her. He nipped at her bottom lip, not wanting the kiss to end, but knowing that DJ was just in the next room.

"Well, hello to you, too," Lois said with a smile. "What was that for?"

"I didn't think I would get another chance to kiss you tonight. I had to take advantage of the opportunity."

"Hmm," she moaned, leaning in for another quick kiss. "I like the way you think."

Lois heard a pan clink in the kitchen and suddenly pulled away, the weight of what was about to happen coming over her again. She had tried all day not to get too nervous about meeting Senator Kent, but it had been useless. That morning, she had tried to put toothpaste on her hair brush, and right before they left to come to Clark's apartment, she tried to bring along a gallon of milk from the refrigerator instead of the bottle of wine she bought for the evening. She was acting like a typical nervous person, and that annoyed her. Lois Lane didn't get nervous, especially about something like this.

Clark took her hand and smiled. "Come on," he said, pulling her toward the kitchen. "Mom's looking forward to meeting you." Lois inaudibly mumbled a reply as they reached his mother, who was steadily working in the kitchen. "Mom…" he said, feeling Lois's hand tense in his.

Martha turned around with a smile on her face and wiped her hands on a nearby towel. "You must be Lois. Clark's told me a lot about you."

Lois blushed and looked away, resorting to her usual sarcasm. "Great, and here I was hoping we would get off on the right foot."

"Lois," Clark admonished, though he had to stifle a grin. _Typical Lois,_ he thought.

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Kent." She took a deep breath and extended her hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Same here, honey," Martha replied, shaking the younger woman's hand. "But please, call me Martha."

Lois nodded and turned her direction toward the living room, looking for her son. "Hannah wasn't sleeping, was she?" she whispered to Clark.

"No, she just woke up, in fact."

Lois walked into the living room to find DJ while Clark stood in the kitchen with Martha. The look on his face was full of nerves, and Martha felt for him. "Relax, Clark. I think Lois is nervous enough for both of you."

Clark looked at her questioningly. "I just…"

Martha nodded her understanding. "I know. You want everything to be perfect. And I'm not just talking about tonight."

"Tonight is a good place to start."

Martha simply nodded as she turned back to the stove. Clark didn't speak either, but she could see from the corner of her eye that he was watching Lois in the living room with DJ and Hannah. And though she couldn't fully see his face, she was almost certain he was watching them with a bemused look on his face.

"Why don't you finish setting the table, Clark? Then you can tell Lois and DJ it's time to eat."

Lois must have heard Martha's instructions, because she soon came into the kitchen carrying DJ. She didn't carry him much anymore because he was not only getting too big, but also old enough to walk for himself. She walked up to Martha, who had just turned off the stove and placed the lasagna on the countertop.

"DJ, this is Mrs. Kent," she said, watching as the genuine smile crossed Martha's face. "She's Clark's mom."

DJ's face lit up. "Really?"

"Yeah," Lois replied, sharing a grin with Martha over her son's enthusiasm. "She made dinner for us tonight. Wasn't that nice of her?"

"Yes. Thank you Clark's mom."

Lois and Martha laughed, and just as Lois was about to correct him, Martha spoke up. "You can call me Martha, okay DJ?"

"Thanks, Martha."

"Tell you what," the older woman suggested, "why don't you go find out what's taking Clark so long? Tell him I said that supper's getting cold."

Lois put DJ down, and he ran into the dining room repeating the Martha's words.

"You have a very well-behaved son, Lois."

The younger woman searched for even a drip of sarcasm in her words, but heard none. Instead, Martha was paying her a genuine compliment, something she wasn't used to hearing very often.

"Thank you," Lois replied simply.

"I know you're nervous about tonight. If it makes you feel any better, I am, too."

"You?" Lois questioned. She didn't think it was right for the mother to be nervous in this situation. Martha was, after all, in a position to totally reject Lois and pass down an edict to Clark that he was to run as far away from her as possible. "Why in the world are you nervous?"

"It's a mother's nerves, really. Don't take this the wrong way, Lois, but I admittedly had my doubts when Clark told me he was seeing someone. I'm nervous for him because my first instinct is that he's rushing."

"Oh."

How was Lois supposed to respond to _that?_ Her eyes left Martha's, her confidence and what little determination she felt waning and seemingly draining from her body. That is, until Martha laid her hand over Lois's on the counter.

"But now that I've seen the two of you together, even though you haven't told DJ yet, I see that you are both so at ease with each other."

"I've only been here for ten minutes. How can you know all that already?"

"He hovers over you, but not in an over-protective way. And you lean into him, whether you realize it or not."

Lois's cheeks reddened as she listened to Martha's quick analysis of her connection with Clark. Now that she thought about it, she did have a tendency to lean into him when he was close to her.

"If I didn't know any better, I would have thought that you had been together for years, not weeks," Martha continued. "If I have one concern though, it's how you're going to manage the fact that you both have young children."

The elation Lois was beginning to feel started to wane, but she took the initiative and answered the best way she could. "We have the same concerns, Martha. But we're working on it." She started to pace around the kitchen, the words coming a little harder to her now. "You know, Clark is the first man I've had in my life who hasn't second-guessed every decision I make in regards to DJ. My ex-husband, my father, and even David's father have made it clear that they disagree with the way I'm raising him. Clark doesn't necessarily agree with everything, but he listens to me and _talks_ to me. And I return the favor by dishing out timely parenting advice."

"But…"

"Mrs. Kent," Lois interrupted, feeling like she knew the objection Martha was going to raise. "Clark and I are both very aware of the decisions that got us to this point in our lives. We don't regret them, but look at them as blessings in disguise." Feeling the emotion of the moment, and finding herself on the verge of admitting things she hadn't even admitted to _Clark_ yet, Lois turned away from Martha and contemplated walking into the dining room. Instead, she took a deep breath and turned around calmer and more collected. Her voice was low and even, almost to the point that she was whispering. "I care for Clark, Mrs. Kent. And God help me, but I care for that baby girl in there. We went into this with our eyes wide open. We know there's more at stake than just the two of us here. You've seen how much DJ adores Clark," she trailed off, not knowing how to continue.

"Clark said you took him to the daycare the first day you met?"

"It wasn't planned. Our boss made us partners and caused a big fuss about us always going places _together._ I got into an argument with DJ's dad and felt the need to see my boy. Clark came along and DJ took to him immediately."

Martha smiled, knowing how easily it was to get taken in by Clark's charm. She looked away from Lois and thought about how fervently she made her case in regards to her relationship with Clark. Though the development had been quick, she could see how devoted they were. She couldn't speak for Lois, but Martha had to admit that Clark was much stronger with Lois at his side. His break-up with Kathleen had left him hurting for months, so much that he almost lost his internship in Gotham. He rebounded out of necessity, but never regained the light in his eyes. That light, that happiness, was one of the first things she noticed about him when he picked her up from the airport yesterday."

"Mom, the table's ready." Clark entered the room and immediately noticed the tension between Lois and his mother. His eyes darted between them as they each avoided looking directly at him. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah," Martha said, busying herself with the pan of lasagna. "We were just having a chat. You know, getting to know each other." She looked over to Lois and smiled, saying what she didn't have a chance to say out loud. "Lois, if you'll grab the salad we can get this meal underway."

"Sure, Martha."

Clark watched as the two women carried the food into the dining room. From the way they acted, he was almost certain Lois and his mother had some kind of confrontation. They were both tense, and Lois, especially, was in her defensive mode. Whatever it was though, they seemed to reach some kind of impasse, which was good. At least he thought it was.

Martha made it a point to watch the interaction between Lois and Clark during supper. She observed them, as well as the way they were with DJ, both individually and together.

She found immediately that the conversation came easily between them. One of her biggest worries was that because they were partners at work, their whole time would be spent discussing nothing but what happened when they were investigating or writing a story. Those fears were laid to rest when Clark started to tell the story of when Lois accompanied him to the Department of Child and Family Services after Hannah came along. They laughed and joked and bantered almost as if she wasn't there. DJ watched excitedly as Clark told embarrassing stories from that day—and others from the first few days with Hannah—while Lois gave light-hearted admonishments.

By the time Martha saw Lois and Clark automatically clear the table and do the dishes side by side while DJ found a movie and surprisingly settled on her lap on the couch, she had no choice to admit what she'd seen coming from the minute Lois and DJ arrived: they were becoming a family.

DJ's quick taking to her was at first startling, but she took to him just about as quickly as he did to her. In her asking of general questions (like _Are you excited for school to start? _and _Did you enjoy your trip to Florida?_), she found that he was very well-spoken for a five-year-old. DJ also spoke very fondly of Clark, only further proving to her the kind of bond they were beginning to build together.

As DJ drifted off to sleep in her lap, Clark set down the glass of wine in his hand and turned his attention to Lois and his mother. "OK, now what was that I walked in on right before supper?" He looked at each of them pointedly and when they both turned away from his gaze, he knew. "Mom, I can't believe you."

Martha opened her mouth to speak, but Lois cut her off. "Don't be mad at her, Clark. I would have done the same thing if I was in her position. She's looking out for her boy."

Clark stared at them, the understanding look they shared was leaving him confused. "Then why did you look like you were about to cry, Lois?"

Lois sighed, realizing that Clark had indeed seen her close to tears. They weren't, however, for the reasons he thought. She turned her attention fully to him, blocking Martha out of what should be a private conversation. "Trust me, Clark. They weren't because I was upset." She smirked, leaning her head in just a little and quickly running her hand down his cheek. But before he could ask what they _were_ for, Lois changed her tone and started to stand. "I should get DJ home and to bed. Would you help me carry him out to the car?"

Clark stood and turned to his mother, who was trying desperately not to interrupt what was on the verge of being a private moment. He glanced down at Hannah, who was fast asleep. "Mom, if Hannah wakes up, there's a bottle in the refrigerator. I'll be back in a few minutes."

"It was nice to meet you, Lois," Martha said while Clark was picking up DJ. "I hope to see you again soon."

Lois turned, thinking that Martha's words sounded forced. But upon seeing her face, she could tell the older woman actually felt remorseful for putting her through the ringer. "I hope so, too." She extended her hand, but was caught off guard when Martha instead hugged her.

"I'm sorry I put you through that, Lois. It wasn't my intention to make you feel inadequate."

"No hard feelings. I grew up with the General as a father. I'm used to interrogations." She turned and met Clark and DJ at the door, thankful the evening was an experience she could soon put behind her.

Lois noticed as she went down the elevator with Clark and a sleeping DJ that she was getting some interesting looks from Clark. It wasn't until they exited the building and started walking down the street to where she had parked her car that he finally said something, though.

"Care to explain to me what just happened? Because I feel like I just missed the climactic scene from a mystery movie."

"I told you, she was just looking out for you. Her questions and concerns caught me off guard, though they shouldn't have. I knew she would have some."

"And the tears?"

"Oh, look," Lois almost exclaimed as she tried to change the subject. "We're here." She took out her keys and unlocked the door and opened it so Clark could set DJ onto the seat. "Well, I should get him home."

"Lois."

"What?"

"Why the tears earlier?" He watched her head turn back toward DJ and took her face in his hands and gently turned her back to face him. "He's sound asleep. Now, what had you so worked up earlier?"

Lois's eyes fell toward the ground and she sighed. "Are we really going to do this here and now?"

"Why not?"

"You don't even know what _this_ is."

"Do I need to? You said it wasn't bad."

"No, it's not. It's just…"

"It's just what?"

"Not the way I expected it to come out, that's all."

Clark exhaled deeply, looking to the dark sky in frustration. "You're driving me crazy, Lois. For God's sake, just tell me."

Without a moment's hesitation, Lois pushed herself up on her toes and pressed her lips to Clark's. She waited for his shock to subside and start kissing her back before she deepened the kiss. When she pulled away and watched him open his eyes, she chuckled a little that he looked even more frustrated. "It wasn't exactly my intention to tell your mother I was falling in love with you before I told you."

"What?"

Lois slapped him on the arm and leaned into him. "You heard me, Smallville. I'm saying it—again—out loud. I'm falling in love with you."

"The reason you were…earlier…"

"Yeah, the discussion with your mom got kind of heated. I didn't know how to convince her and then I was telling her before I knew it. I was upset because it was something I felt you should have known first."

"Oh."

"I wasn't just telling Martha I was okay earlier to pacify you. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that if DJ was in the same situation, I would have been just as protective of any woman he brought over for supper. We're good. Really."

"I'm glad," he told her quietly. He leaned forward so he was pressing her against the car and kissed her softly three times, each time lasting longer than the previous one. His forehead rested on hers and they stared into each other's eyes. "I love you." He saw the look of slight shock come over her face at the lack of '_falling in love with'_ and added to his statement, not wanting to overwhelm her. "I know you're not there yet, and that's fine. But I _do_ love you."

She kissed him again. "Thank you."

"Anytime." He desperately wanted to stay with her. Letting her go at night was getting more and more difficult as the days passed on, and he knew that was something he was going to have to deal with soon. "You better go, before I make you stay."

"Right. As if your mom didn't have enough questions and concerns."

"Exactly my point." He helped her into her car and closed the door, smiling as she shut it and started her car and drove off into the night.


	10. Chapter 10: In the Open

**Chapter 10: In the Open**

Hannah lay on the floor of Lois's living room, smiling up as her dad and DJ played peek-a-boo with her using one of her clean burp rags. The game was something Martha did with Hannah many times during her visit, and DJ had picked up on it the night they went over to Clark's apartment for supper. And once Clark noticed how much fun both DJ and Hannah were having, he knew he had to join in and enjoy the smiles and giggles the game incited in his daughter.

"Peek…a-boo," DJ exclaimed as he removed the rag from over Hannah's face. She made a small noise and smiled, and her hands reached up for the rag. She gave up quickly, and DJ again placed the rag over her face and repeated the action.

Clark was content to sit back and watch DJ play with Hannah. Though he didn't know for sure, Clark suspected that DJ was beginning to see Hannah as a younger sister. He remembered being DJ's age and wanting desperately to have a younger brother or sister to play with, someone to shower with affection and love. Such an event never happened for Clark, but he was glad he could give that to DJ, even if Hannah wasn't really his sister.

"Clark, it's your turn." DJ had practically climbed into Clark's lap where they sat on the floor and handed him the rag. Clark took it, but instead put it over DJ's head before pulling it away quickly. "Clark," DJ whined jokingly, "with Hannah, not me."

"Why not you?"

"Because, silly. I'm not the baby."

Clark hugged DJ close and whispered in his ear, acting like he didn't want Lois to hear him in the kitchen. "Don't let your mom hear that, Buddy. Moms have this thing where they always call their kids their babies, even after they're grown."

"Does your mom still do that?"

"She does. It's annoying sometimes, but I know it's because she loves me."

DJ said nothing but just smiled, took back the rag, and continued to play peek-a-boo with Hannah. Clark looked toward the kitchen and saw Lois, who was in the middle of wiping down the counter, staring in at them with a mystified look on her face. The small smile that adorned her face was more than enough confirmation for him that he handled the situation appropriately. Without a word, she went back to wiping down the counter and he went back to playing with Hannah and DJ.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

For some reason, Lois couldn't get enough of watching Clark with DJ. Their conversations were always so easy, so truthful, and the more she saw, the more she found it hard to believe that Clark had only been a father for a couple months. He was a natural and DJ gravitated to him because of it. She loved how, from the very beginning, Clark never showed a bit of fear when it came to her son. Even from that first meeting, Clark jumped right in and simply accepted DJ as an unavoidable part of her life.

She couldn't remember why she had been so worried about letting Clark into this part of her life, simply because he fit so naturally into it. For as many logistical problems they were still feeling their way through, the original concerns she had when they cautiously started their relationship were constantly fading away as if they had never been a concern at all.

In the two weeks since he admitted his love to her though, this was the first time they had the chance to spend the evening together. She could tell that DJ was going through "Clark withdrawals," as she had called them. Lois was suffering from them as well, but she had to keep in mind that she got to see him at work every day. DJ had only talked to him on the phone twice, and both times were only for a couple minutes each time. The boy missed Clark, and she couldn't really fault him for it. So when DJ begged Clark not to leave until he went to bed, Lois could tell that Clark was suffering from DJ withdrawals as well.

Then, DJ insisted that Clark be the one to tuck him in for bed. Lois's heart skipped a beat, and then she put on a show of being hurt. But as DJ pulled Clark back toward his bedroom, Clark turned back toward her and smiled while shrugging his shoulders as if to say, _how can I deny him?_

Feeling out of place, Lois went back into the living room and wandered aimlessly, not knowing what to do now that she wasn't responsible for making sure DJ was in bed. She checked on Hannah, hoping that maybe the baby was awake and cranky so she could feel needed, even if just for a minute while Clark was occupied. Hannah was sound asleep though, so she sat on the couch and tried to wait for Clark to return from the back of the apartment.

When he didn't return immediately, Lois got curious. What could they possibly be doing back there that was taking so long? Were they sharing embarrassing stories about her again and having laughs at her expense? She wouldn't put it past them. She crept down the hall, careful not to make a sound, and listened behind the partially-closed door.

"Will you be here when I wake up?"

"I…probably not."

She could hear the nervousness in Clark's voice, his careful answers, and she suspected that his body language was saying the same thing. She moved to the other side of the door, making sure she wasn't seen or heard, and grinned slightly when Clark came into view.

"But you're Mommy's boyfriend, right? You should be here more. We miss you when you're not here."

Clark looked down toward the bed, in a way that told Lois that he was caught off guard by DJ's assumption. Frankly, she was, too. And as much as she wanted to jump in there and deny her son's claims, she was more curious as to how Clark would respond. She looked on as he took a deep breath and looked back at DJ, all signs of nervousness gone.

"What make you think I'm her boyfriend?"

"You make Mommy smile, and Mommy never used to smile. Not even when Daddy still lived with us."

Lois's heart wrenched, knowing just how much DJ was aware of her feelings over the last couple years. It hurt to know that DJ could tell that she was sad and lonely, but there was nothing she could do about that now. And, it seemed, DJ was already making a play to make sure she wasn't like that any more.

"Well, how would you feel? If I was your mom's boyfriend, I mean?"

"Would you be here more?"

"Maybe."

"Would you be here when I woke up tomorrow?"

"Let's not push it, Buddy."

Lois stifled a laugh, knowing that Clark's face had to be turning red at DJ's hopefulness. She watched as Clark stood from the bed and started to tuck in DJ.

"Don't worry about tomorrow, DJ. I'll see what I can do about being around more…if it means that much to you."

"And Mommy. Don't forget about Mommy."

"Right. Mommy, too."

Despite it being dark in the room, Lois was sure she saw a big smile come over Clark's face at his last remark. He walked around the bed to the near side of the door and turned off the small bedside lamp next to DJ's bed.

"Goodnight, DJ."

"'Night, Clark. Love you," DJ replied sleepily.

Lois had been starting to walk back down the hallway when she heard her son's declaration. She stopped in her tracks, anxious to hear how Clark would handle this latest bombshell.

"Love you, too, Buddy." His voice was soft and a pitch higher than usual.

Lois walked about halfway down the hallway and rested her back against the wall, waiting for Clark to exit the bedroom. She nervously put her hands in her pockets and smiled in adoration as he came out of the room and turned back to quietly latch the door without even noticing her presence.

Seeing her standing there when he turned around surprised him, and he looked down to the floor and exhaled deeply before meeting her knowing glare. "You heard all that, didn't you?"

"What was your first clue?"

"The same mischievous look you get on your face whenever you know something I don't."

Lois simply nodded, knowing that he had a point. And really, she wasn't all that upset that Clark could tell that about her. In fact, the idea made her smile even wider.

"I guess the question now is if we go ahead and tell him or continue to keep it to ourselves. He already has it figured out."

"You didn't exactly admit to it, though," Lois replied.

"It wasn't my place. He's your son, so you decide when it's appropriate to tell him we're a couple." Clark was standing in front of her now, having walked to her as they were talking. He took her hands in his and gently leaned into her.

"He loves you," Lois confirmed quietly.

"I love him, too."

"Why?"

"How can I love his amazing mother and not love him? Package deal, Lois."

Lois looked him in the eye as she felt a single tear fall down her cheek. Her eyes closed as Clark kissed it away and then leaned his head against hers. And in that moment, she knew.

"I love you, too," she whispered.

"I know."

They remained silent for a time, just cherishing the closeness and emotion of the moment. Lois was the one to finally break the silence. "We'll tell him together the next chance we get. At this point I could really care less if David finds out."

Clark nodded and walked them down the hallway into the living room. "It makes sense. If DJ already thinks we're together anyway, there's nothing to keep him from saying something to David. We might as well remove all doubt and make sure he knows the truth." He went over to the crib and gently picked up his sleeping daughter. "In the meantime, I should get this one home and into bed."

Lois helped him gather up Hannah's things as they shared glances with each other. She walked him to the door and handed him Hannah's diaper bag and kissed him on the lips briefly. "I'll see you tomorrow, then."

He contemplated giving the perfunctory "I love you" but decided against it, not wanting the sentiment to lose its meaning. He instead smiled and kissed her one more time. "Tomorrow," he repeated, before turning and hearing Lois close the door behind him.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Lois, I'm off to interview Irons," Clark said from across his desk as he gathered up his pen, reporter's notebook, and audio recorder. "Any last words of encouragement?"

"Eye on the prize, Smallville," she said distractedly from behind her computer, finishing up her sentence before finally looking up and smiling. "Oh, and a few good words about me to our golden ticket wouldn't hurt, either."

"I'm sure he doesn't hate you, Lois. It's quite possible that he's just a little uneasy talking about his past. We have to convince him that this is a past that is best left unburied."

"Which is why you're going and not me," she said as she stood, walking around to his desk so she could give him her full attention for a couple minutes. It was still difficult, even after two months of dating, to not give even the slightest touch when they were at work. As far as their co-workers were concerned, they were partners and friends and nothing else. To touch him and kiss him the way she wanted to right now would start the office talking in a way neither one of them wanted.

"Come by later so I can bring you up to speed?"

"Sure, but not for too long. It's a school night and DJ is going to David's this weekend so we have to pack his things."

Clark nodded as he grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair and headed for the elevator. Lois kept her eyes on his retreating form as he pushed the button, not quite wanting to go about her day just yet. She was rewarded when Clark turned around just before the elevator opened and smiled back at her as if they were the only two people in the room. Too soon, the doors closed and he was off to attempt the impossible.

A ringing phone brought her out of her daydream, and soon enough Lois realized it was her own. "Daily Planet, this is Lois Lane."

"_Miss Lane, my name is Elizabeth Brays. I work in Senator Vega's office."_

Lois immediately went on the defensive. "Listen, I don't know what the Senator thinks he can accomplish my harassing me at work, but he knows not to contact me here."

"_I'm sorry, Miss Lane. I didn't mean to startle you."_ There was a moment of silence. _"Let me try this again. I know you're investigating my boss, and I have some information for you. Can we meet at Delano's Deli in 30 minutes?"_

"Sorry," Lois apologized. "I tend to jump to conclusions when I get calls from his office. Delano's in thirty. I can do that."

"_And as suspicious as this is going to sound, can we keep this between just the two of us for now? I know you have a partner, but…"_

"The fewer who know you're squealing on your boss, the better, right?"

"_That's one way to put it, but yes."_

"Then that's the way it'll be. See you in thirty."

Lois hung up the phone and replayed the conversation over in her head. How did this woman know to contact her? Worse yet, if this Elizabeth gal knew that Lois was investigating Michael, then how many other people knew? She'd asked questions, but they were always directed more toward Bruno Mannheim. Michael only became involved, at least where her investigation was concerned, in the last few months. All these questions and possible situations prevented her from completing her current article before she had to leave to meet Elizabeth at the deli.

As she walked out to her car, she fumbled with her cell phone. She certainly intended on keeping her promise to Elizabeth, but she felt it was necessary to tell Clark at least _something_ about where she was going. In the end she decided that being evasive but clear was her best bet.

From: Lois to Clark 12:15 p.m. Going to check out a lead. Will be in public, no skulking. Tell you more later.

From: Clark to Lois 12: 18 p.m. You better. Gotta go. Irons just got here. Love you.

From: Lois to Clark 12:20 p.m Good luck. Love you, too.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

"What made you want to start the IronWorks?"

Clark walked down the expansive hallway of what had to be the most technologically advanced building in Metropolis. His tour guide was John Henry Irons, a muscular black man who would look menacing if not for the glasses on his face.

"It's not so much 'why the IronWorks' as it is 'Why Metropolis?' This city is the most advanced city on the eastern seaboard, Clark." They walked in silence for a few yards before John continued. "I'm a researcher first and foremost. I felt like it was time to take control of my future and ensure that my research is only used to help people. So there's the answer to your original question."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

"He's in league with Bruno Mannheim, and I have proof."

Lois tried not to laugh. _Tell me something I don't know, lady._ But as much as she wanted to, she suppressed her laughter and resolved to let the girl talk. "What kind of proof?"

"Shipment receipts, check stubs, and a handful of visits from Mannheim himself."

"And how did you find out about this?"

"I'm nosy. And I have exceptionally good hearing."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"Is this on or off the record?"

"Preferably on, but I'll take whatever I can get at this point."

"I designed the BG-60 as a military weapon. Every design I came up with was rejected by the government. They wanted _more._ The BG-20 and the BG-40 were both sent back as being inadequate for their purposes. I submitted my designs for the BG-60, a weapon strong enough to literally fry its victim, and the military once again asked me to double its output. I balked and quit AmerTek. No one else could duplicate or even decipher the plans, so the military canceled the contract."

"So how do we now have BG-80s littering the streets?"

"That, Mr. Kent, is the million dollar question."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"How did you know to contact me?"

"Like I said," Elizabeth explained, pointing to her ear. "Good hearing. I overheard your name a few times at the office when the Senator was talking to his son. I recognized your name and planned on contacting you. Before I even got the chance, word got back to Mannheim that you were seen down at the Ace O' Clubs with your partner talking to Bibbo Bibbowski. And since that place is known as a hangout for—"

"Now, wait a second," Lois interrupted, holding her hand out across the table. "Do you expect me to believe that you know all this just from overhearing conversations?"

"Whether or not you believe me is totally up to you, Miss Lane."

"Can't you give me just one piece of hard evidence instead of just things you've heard?"

"Well, there is this..." she said, reaching into her bag and revealing a piece of metal with the word _Toastmaster_ written in bold letters.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

John walked Clark to the door in silence as Clark contemplated everything he'd been told. He never dreamed that he would be walking out of the IronWorks with all this information, even if most of it was off the record for the time being.

"Thanks for taking the time to talk to me, John. I'll do my best to keep this under wraps. If we get to the point where feel we have to use your name, I'll be sure to give you a heads up."

"I appreciate it, Clark. Let me know if I can be of any more help."

Clark simply nodded and walked toward the door, glancing at his watch and seeing that he had roughly 40 minutes before he had to be at the daycare to pick up Hannah.

"Oh, and Clark?"

"Yeah?"

"Tell your partner 'no hard feelings' for me, will you? I was acting on a tip from a business associate to stay away from her."

Clark laughed, understanding why John would take such a suggestion so seriously. "Your associate exaggerates, John. Her bark is worse than her bite."

"Then bring her along next time you stop by. I'll apologize to her in person."

Clark nodded his agreement and stepped out the door, taking in the fact that John Henry Irons had invited him back to tack at more length about his past with AmerTek Industries.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"I don't know, Lois. It's all a little too convenient for me."

Clark sat at the dining room table feeding Hannah while Lois relayed her conversation with Senator Vega's aide earlier in the afternoon. He wasn't bothered at first that she went to go see this woman without him, but as he listened to Lois he was getting increasingly suspicious.

"I know," she replied, desperate for him to believe they had something solid, "but I think we still need to follow up on it. This could lead to proof that Michael is working with Mannheim."

"She could have found that nameplate on the ground on her way to the deli. It doesn't prove anything."

Lois took a seat at the table across from him, not sure what to say or do. As much as she tried, she found it difficult to catch his eye. He was paying attention to Hannah, watching intently as the baby finished her bottle. It was only when Hannah finished her bottle and Clark put her over his shoulder to burp her that their eyes met. Lois was still reeling, wondering why something exciting like a new source was leading to such a disagreement. She searched his eyes, hoping that hers conveyed her utter dismay at why they were at odds over this issue.

"It proves that she _knows_ something. Clark, this woman knew that I was investigating Michael. David knows that I'm looking at Mannheim but he has no reason to believe that I've connected him to Michael. Even if he did, I don't see Michael bragging about it when he's at the office. He would want to keep it as quiet as possible."

Clark stood and put Hannah in her crib, then returned to the table and his seat. "I don't like it. The whole situation sounds like a set-up of some kind."

Lois came around and table and leaned on it, getting in his face as she tried not to raise her voice. "Maybe. Either way, we can't discount it because it doesn't come in the form we prefer."

Clark paused, not liking the fact that they were on the verge of having a full-fledged argument. They hadn't disagreed on a subject this much since the first week of their partnership, and doing so now was disheartening. He took a deep breath and attempted to compromise. "Fine, but I want to go with you from now on."

"What good is that going to accomplish? She replied, her voice now more emphatic.

"If you don't know why, then I'm not so sure I should tell you," he lashed out in a huff, standing and walking over to the sink and leaning against it.

Lois backed away and stood up, following his retreat to the other side of the kitchen. Her anger was in full force now. "Really, Clark? Are we going to play _that_ game?

"It's not a game," Clark shot back, not looking at her. His grip tightened on the sink, his knuckles turning almost as white as the sink.

"Don't you think I know that? But I don't see how you chaperoning me to meet a source in a public place is going to change anything."

"Damn it, Lois," Clark yelled, turning toward her as he punched the sink. "Didn't you hear a word I told you earlier about what Irons was developing? If it gets any stronger it's practically a hand-held nuclear weapon. It's not about whether or not I trust you, because I do." His voice softened a little when he noticed DJ watching them from the other room. "It's _them_ I don't trust. And I can't lose you."

Lois was ready to fire back at him until she heard the last sentence. And when she followed Clark's eyes and surmised that they had an audience, her voice softened considerably. "I can take care of myself, Clark."

"They can take care of you, too. And that's what I'm afraid of."

The doorbell rang, cutting off any response Lois might have had. Taking a deep breath, her thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of DJ barreling into the kitchen.

"Pizza!"

Clark came back into the dining room with the trace of a smile. "Good call," he said under his breath to Lois.

"The boy loves pizza."

"A trait I'm sure _you_ had nothing to do with."

"Eh," she said, shrugging her shoulders. "I might have helped."

Clark sat the pizza down on the counter and looked across the room where DJ was waiting impatiently for his dinner and leaned in to Lois. "I hate arguing with you," he told her in a quiet voice.

"You can't protect me every minute of every day, Clark."

"But is it so bad that I want to? I know it comes with the job and that sometimes you're—we're—going to find ourselves in precarious situations, but can you really hold it against me that I want to keep you safe?"

"When you go all Neanderthal on me like that? Yes. Been there. Done that. Don't want to do it again."

Clark turned away slightly. "I'm sorry, I—"

"Hey," she said, taking hold of his arm and turning him back to face her. "I do understand, you know. Remember that I have loved ones to look out for, as well. I understand what it means to protect someone." She paused, searching for the right words. "But you have to trust my instincts. As much as I hate to throw it in your face, I've been at this longer than you. I know how to spot a fake when I see one. And my gut tells me this girl is for real."

"Come on, guys. I'm hungry," came the young voice from the dining room. Lois and Clark looked at each other and smiled, recognizing that parenthood was calling.

"Are we going to tell him?" Clark asked.

"We might as well. He seems to have it all figured out anyway." Lois sighed deeply and looked in at her son, who was totally oblivious to his mother's nerves.

"He wasn't upset, you know. I'd even venture to say he was in love with the idea."

"I know, but this makes it real, you know?"

"True," he said, reaching down and taking Lois's hand in support and leaning in closer to her. "But look at it this way: we can be ourselves around him." And to emphasize his statement, he dropped a quick kiss to her temple before taking the pizza to the dining room table.

The three of them got settled and started eating. Clark and Lois watched DJ curiously, looking for just the right opening to drop their not-so-big bombshell. When Clark noticed that Lois had balked no more than three times in less than a minute, he decided to take the lead and do it himself.

"DJ, do you remember the other night when you asked if I was Mommy's boyfriend?"

DJ looked up and nodded with a mouthful of pizza. "Mmmhmm."

"Is that something you would be okay with?" Lois asked, taking the lead from Clark once he got the conversation started.

"Of course. That's why I asked. I don't want you to be sad anymore, Mommy. Clark makes you happy."

And once again, her son had done it. Her five-year-old, who wasn't supposed to be even partially this mature at his age, had gone and said something that brought tears to her eyes. He had no concerns over how this would change his world, simply because he already held Clark in such high regard. He was, instead, happy for his mom. He was able to see that her life had been missing something and that Clark filled that void. And since his mom was happy, he was happy.

And then, just as quickly, he was a child again. "Can I have another piece of pizza?"


	11. Chapter 11: Perfect

**Chapter 11: Perfect**

Lois strolled into the Daily Planet just before lunch, having returned from an interview with Mayor Stevens. As she pushed the button to the elevator and walked in, her mind couldn't help but return to the disagreement she and Clark had the evening before.

They didn't get a chance to discuss it after supper. She needed to get DJ back home to pack, and frankly she thought maybe it was best they didn't talk about it when their emotions on the issue were running so high. But with the relative safety of the Daily Planet bullpen to keep them from getting too out of control, she fully expected them to talk about it more.

The elevator dinged and she entered the bullpen, walking purposely toward her desk and the piles of paper on her desk. Despite the conversation she knew was coming, her heart skipped a beat when she caught sight of Clark sitting at his desk, going back and forth between typing and checking his notes.

Unable to resist, she walked up behind him and laid her hands on his desk, her face close to his. "Anything for the front page?" she whispered.

Clark took a deep breath, surprised by her presence and proximity, before answering in the most even voice he could find. "Not likely." And then, his voice dropped down considerably. "But we're going to find ourselves on the front page of the gossip section if you're not careful."

Lois reluctantly stood up and made a show of correcting a typo before walking around to her desk and setting down her purse and briefcase. She sat down and logged on to her computer before noticing that Clark appeared to be deep in thought. Her cell phone buzzed and she smiled as she read the text.

To: Lois From: Clark 1:36 p.m. Damn you. I lost my train of thought. Part of me wishes you had to spend the afternoon with Cat. Serve you right.

To: Clark From: Lois 1:37 p.m. And the other part?

To: Lois From: Clark 1:39 p.m. Wouldn't you like to know…

To: Clark From: Lois 1:40 p.m. I DID ask.

To: Lois From: Clark 1:42 p.m. Classified info. Could tell you but I'd have to kill you. You're too beautiful to kill.

To: Clark From: Lois 1:43 p.m. Flatterer.

To: Lois From: Clark 1:46 p.m. I feel like a kid. We're sitting 10 ft. from each other and texting each other instead of talking.

To: Clark From: Lois 1:47 p.m. I don't know what you're talking about. I'm checking my e-mail.

To: Lois From: Clark 1:48 p.m. That means I'm studying my notes so hard I'm about to burn a hole through them. Thank you.

To: Clark From: Lois 1:49 p.m. For what?

To: Lois From: Clark 1:50 p.m. For making me feel like a kid. Love you.

Lois looked up from her screen, and for the first time in fifteen minutes, their eyes met. She smiled and returned to 'checking her e-mail.'

To: Clark From: Lois 1:51 p.m. Any time, Smallville. Love you, too.

Their flirtation finding its natural end, Clark and Lois returned to their work. But when Clark's desk phone rang thirty minutes later, it caused both of them to raise their heads.

Having recognized the ring as being in-house, Clark answered with a simple "hello." Lois looked on curiously as he nodded his head once and quickly answered, "Thanks, Maria. I'll be there in five," before hanging up the phone and grabbing his notebook as he stood from his desk.

"Perry?"

"Yeah, he wants to see me."

"Just you?"

"Just me," Clark told her as he headed toward the door and the elevator. "Don't worry, I'll share all the juicy details when I get back. Maria didn't sound frazzled, so my guess is that he's not angry."

"Always a good sign," she replied, shooing his toward the elevator. "Better not keep the Chief waiting."

As the minutes passed by, Lois couldn't help but wonder why Perry wanted to talk to Clark. Surely, she thought, Perry couldn't be upset with Clark's work thus far. It didn't matter that she was in love with him—Lois still believed that Clark was one hell of a journalist and that he would continue to get better, whether or not they stayed partners. Clark had turned in a large number of articles independent from the big story he was working on with her, and more than a handful made their way to the front page.

Soon enough Clark returned from Perry's office, tossing his notebook onto the desk and sighing heavily as he sat down.

When he didn't explain immediately, Lois scooted her chair over next to his and started to think the worst. "That bad?"

"No, I suppose it could be much worse."

"Then what's the matter?"

"Hutchison on the fifth floor was supposed to cover Representative Bryan's education fundraiser tonight. Instead, he's on a flight to California to make arrangements for his mother's funeral."

"Oh," Lois said simply. "So how do you fit into the picture?"

"Now I'm covering the fundraiser. For the social page." Clark leaned back in his chair and ran his hands over his face in frustration. He'd really been looking forward to spending some time with Lois, and now, he was working on a Friday night.

"You? Don't they have any other society reporters available?"

"Yes," Clark told her, not quite meeting her eyes. "But Perry caught a glimpse of the guest list and thought he could maybe kill two birds with one stone. He's sending me because Senator Vega's going to be there and he thinks I might be able to come up with something that will help us in our investigation. And he didn't say so, but I think he's also taking into consideration that I'm Senator Kent's son."

Lois perked up, the thought of getting new information clouding anything else Clark said. "Well, in that case, you're going to need a plus one."

"No, I don't want you anywhere close to that fundraiser."

And there it was, his over-protectiveness rearing its ugly head once again. "Clark, I thought we covered this already."

"We agreed to disagree." He looked around the bullpen as if he was measuring something in his head, then leaned in and spoke in a voice that was soft but firm. "I can't ask the same kind of questions with you around. Too many connections can be made and then Michael will know that we're working together on investigating him. And I don't think we're ready for him to make that connection yet, especially if that new source of yours _is_ for real."

"But..."

"Just let me do this, Lois. I can go in there as a reporter who happens to be Senator Kent's son and get some information I might not get if you were there with me." He paused, hesitant to continue. "Anyway, I need you to do something else for me tonight."

Lois looked up, excited that while she couldn't go to the fundraiser she could still be helpful in some way. She hated feeling useless. "What's that?"

"I need you to be my babysitter."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Clark rummaged through his ties as he finished getting ready, his voice traveling out into his bedroom where Lois was holding Hannah. "I hate asking you to do this."

"Would you rather have some stranger watch Hannah?"

"No, I just…" his voice trailed off, and he emerged from the closet while putting the tie around his neck and adjusting his collar. "I already depend on you for so much when it comes to Hannah. And now this—"

Lois laid Hannah down on the bed and walked up to Clark, taking each end of his tie in her hands and starting the knot. "You might have been dependent when she first came along, but that was to be expected. And in case you haven't noticed, you hardly ever ask for help anymore. I give it freely."

"You don't have to; Hannah isn't yours."

"You're right. She isn't. But that doesn't stop me from loving her all the same. Package deal, remember?" She finished knotting his tie and tightened it as much as was necessary, smiling as she reached up and tucked a piece of hair behind his ear. "Now, you should get going. The news waits for no man."

Clark walked over to the bed and grabbed his jacket before putting it on. He then picked up Hannah and held her at arm's length in front of him, being careful that she couldn't spit up on him right before he left. "Hey, baby girl. Be good for Lois while Daddy's gone." She smiled back at him, and he couldn't resist drawing her in close and giving her a kiss.

"It's official. Clark Kent is a big pile of goo."

Clark turned around and saw Lois standing in the doorway, looking back at him in what he could only describe as pure Lois. "So sue me. I can't help it."

Lois walked up to Clark and held out her hands, silently asking him to give up Hannah for now. "Come on, hand her over. It's time this one gets her first dose of girl time." She took the baby and cradled her gently as she walked down the hallway. "And anyway, you're going to be late if you don't leave soon."

"Are you sure you're going to be okay with her?" Clark asked as he followed Lois toward the door. "I mean, if something happens you'll—"

"Clark," she said, turning around and putting her hand on his chest to stop him from entering full-on worry mode. "Experienced mother here, remember? We'll be fine. And if something _does_ happen, I'll call you immediately." She then grabbed his tie and pulled his lips to hers, kissing him in hopes of alleviating his fears. "Now, for the last time, go. Your girls will be waiting for you when you get back."

Clark picked up his notebook, press pass, and car keys from the table next to the door and opened it, taking one last look back at Lois. He couldn't help but smile at the image of—he didn't think girlfriend was enough—her standing there with so much love in her eyes, continually telling him without words that he could trust her with…everything. He stalled one last time, dropping a gentle kiss to Hannah's head before doing the same to Lois, knowing that if he kissed her on the lips once more, he wouldn't be going anywhere.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

The only word Clark could come up with to describe his current situation was nervous. In the two hours he had been at the benefit, he had gotten all the information he needed to write his article for the society section. Now, it was time for him to do the dirty work. But, it wasn't the dirty work itself that had him nervous. It was finally meeting the man that he had heard nothing but bad things about: Senator Michael Vega.

Vega was the junior Senator from Kansas, Martha being the senior. But the fact that he was a senator was not the cause of his nervousness. This was Lois's ex-father-in-law and DJ's grandfather. Clark had only begun to scratch the surface of Vega's past with Lois and DJ, and yet, he already had a healthy feeling of contempt for the man.

Clark straightened his tie and walked across the room, keeping his eye on the target the whole way. _Just introduce yourself and see where the conversation takes you,_ he told himself.

"Senator Vega?"

The senator turned around at the sound of his name. He appeared to be annoyed but then looked Clark up and down and smiled. "Yes?"

"Clark Kent, sir," he said, extending his hand. Michael shook it and continued to look him over. "I'm Martha Kent's son. It's nice to finally meet you."

"Ah, yes. It's nice to meet you, as well. She's quite proud of you. She talks about you all the time when we share a flight to or from Washington." Michael paused and continued. "What is it you do again?"

Clark thumbed the press pass on his breast pocket. "I'm a reporter for the Daily Planet. I was assigned to cover the event for the society section."

Michael laughed and looked back at the small group of people behind him before returning his attention to Clark. "You're a society reporter? Are you gay or something?"

"No, sir," he said, making a show of standing up straighter. "I work at the city desk. The regular society reporter had a family emergency."

A troubled expression crossed Michael's face as he took in Clark's words. "Where did you say you normally work?"

"The city desk, sir."

Michael chuckled to himself, his hand coming up to scrape at the stubble beginning to form on his chin before he met Clark's eye with a devious grin. "I knew I'd heard your name somewhere else before. You're Lois's new partner."

Clark cringed inwardly but tried not to show his disappointment to Michael. He wasn't going to get anything from Michael now. "Yes, sir. We've been partners since I started about three months ago."

"And you haven't quit yet? Good Lord, Kent. You've got more gumption than I thought. Lois is known for her man-repelling qualities."

Clark's hand made a fist as he resisted the ever-growing temptation to put the man in front of him in his place. But as his anger grew, he reminded himself that just as Michael wasn't showing his hand, neither could Clark. He did, however, refuse to let Michael talk about Lois like he was. "With all due respect, sir, I've learned a great deal from Lois."

Michael leaned in closer to Clark. "If you're partners, surely you know that she used to be married to my son."

"Yes, sir."

"Well then, while I don't doubt that she is great at giving advice when it comes to journalism, just don't let her give you any parenting advice. The woman doesn't have a maternal bone in her body."

Clark bit back a rude comment, just barely catching himself from lashing out at Michael in a very public place. He flexed his fist again, trying to calm his nerves, and felt his teeth grinding together in anger. After what seemed like an eternity, he took a calming breath and responded to Michael's allegations. "Senator Vega, I would appreciate it if you refrained from bad-mouthing my partner and friend. I would think that you would treat the mother of your grandson with a little more respect."

"What are you trying to say, Son?"

"First of all, Senator," he spat out, his voice threatening to draw attention. "I'm not your son. My parents are Jonathan and Martha Kent, and they taught me to be respectful, even when the person doesn't deserve my respect." Clark took another calming breath and drew himself in closer to Michael, mimicking the senator's earlier action. "Lois loves DJ just as much as he loves her. He's _always_ first in her life. I only hope I can be half the parent she is some day." Clark drew away and extended his hand. "It was nice to meet you, Senator. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a deadline to meet."

Clark wasted no time walking away, a smile on his face and his heart beating wildly. He was almost certain that he just put himself in Michael Vega's crosshairs, but it was worth it if it meant that he defended Lois's honor without telling the Senator the exact nature of their relationship.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Clark entered the apartment quietly, knowing that his little girl was most likely asleep somewhere within. He toed off his shoes at the door and hung his up jacket, taking care to make as little noise as possible.

He searched for signs of life, tiptoeing first to the kitchen, then the dining room, and finally the living room. Not seeing either Hannah or Lois, he continued down the hallway past the bathroom to Hannah's room. He walked into the dark room and stood almost directly over her crib before he realized she wasn't there. Knowing there was only one other place they could be, he followed the hallway down to his bedroom.

The door was partially open and only the bedside lamp illuminated the room. As he pushed open the door, he saw Lois sitting in the rocking chair by the window, softly humming and holding Hannah as the moonlight shone through the window. The sight took his breath away, and he leaned against the door jamb in an effort to catch it.

Lois heard him sigh and turned her attention to the doorway. "Hey," she whispered. "She just fell asleep a while ago."

A feeling of intense love and security came over him as he took in the image of Lois holding Hannah in such a protective manner. He'd been having these moments more and more lately, where he would catch a glimpse of Lois and wonder what he did so right to deserve someone like her. Tipping his head back against the wall, he whispered back, "That's good. No problems, then?"

"Well, we did have quite an evening. We watched a little TV while we ate our bottle. The bottle was followed by the most amazing blow out diaper I have _ever_ seen, and DJ was known as Captain Crappy Pants when he was a baby, so that's saying something."

Clark chuckled lightly, careful not to make too much noise, and she continued. "That made a bath absolutely necessary, and then we demanded another bottle while we fought off sleep and she forced me to sing every Whitesnake song I know before finally going to sleep." Lois looked down at the baby girl and smiled before meeting Clark's eyes again. "But when it comes down to it, she is way too incredible to be even slightly annoying. Kind of like her daddy."

"Sounds like my little girl and I have a fan," Clark whispered, finally moving from the doorway to where Lois and Hannah sat by the window. Reaching out and taking Hannah from Lois' secure arms, he said, "Why don't I put her down while you take a well-deserved break?"

Lois stood from the rocking chair and stretched. "That sounds like a wonderful idea."

A glazed look came over Clark's face as she moved, and he instinctively took her by the forearm and pulled her to him, his mouth covering hers without warning. "Thank you," he breathed against her lips a moment later.

"For what?"

"Everything." Clark looked down at his daughter, sound asleep in his arms, and then turned his gaze back to Lois. "And I don't just mean about Hannah, though she certainly can't be left out. But you, Lois, you make me feel like I can take on the world and I've never felt that way before."

"Likewise, Smallville," Lois replied, an almost shy smile adorning her face as she pulled him down to her lips for another kiss.

"Give me just a few minutes," he breathed, pulling away from her and glancing down at Hannah before leaving Lois's arms and heading for the door.

He walked the short distance to Hannah's room, walking up to her crib and laying her down gently. She made a few faces as she settled onto the bed, a small smile adorning her face as she returned to sleep. Clark watched all this with wonder, once again amazed that this little girl was his and that he had her in his life. He kissed his fingers and laid them gently on her forehead, careful not to disturb her. "Goodnight, my little girl. Sweet dreams." He walked out the door, turning back once more to check on her, and left it cracked only slightly.

Clark stood in the hallway for a few seconds, noticing that the light was still on in his bedroom and that Lois had not come out since he left to put Hannah in bed. He smiled to himself then walked the short distance to his room, laughing at the sight of Lois spread out face down on his bed, her feet hanging over the edge. "You okay?" he asked with amusement.

Lois turned her head to face him, pure exhaustion in her voice. "I admit it. I'm out of practice when it comes to babies."

Clark walked to the foot of the bed, taking one of her bare feet in his hands and starting to massage it. "Why didn't you call? I could have come home earlier."

Lois opened her mouth to answer, but found that she couldn't speak. A small moan came out instead as Clark's hands gently but firmly massaged her aching feet. When she was finally able to form words, they were in appreciation. "I wear heels every day," she finally said, side-stepping his question. "Why am I just now learning that you give amazing foot massages?"

Clark brought her toes up to his mouth and lightly kissed them before moving on to her other foot, giving it the same attention as the other. "Do I really have to answer that?"

"Mmm," she moaned, as he massaged the balls of her feet, causing her to blindly grasp the bed sheet. "Depends."

"On what?"

"On if you're as good at massaging shoulders as you are feet." Lois smiled into the dark room, her eyes threatening to roll into the back of her head as Clark kneaded nine hours of high heels and another three of mothering out of her feet.

"What are you trying to say, Lois?" Clark kissed Lois's other foot and took his time lowering her leg back down onto the bed, his fingers leaving a fiery hot trail on her skin as he did so.

"I'm saying," she replied, turning her head back toward him as much as possible without moving her body, "that I wouldn't be opposed to you getting your cute butt up here and using those amazing hands on my shoulders."

Emboldened by her compliment, Clark climbed onto the bed and smiled as he saw the shadow of a grin on Lois's face as she tried to turn her head toward him more. "You think I have a cute butt?" He moved up the bed on his knees, contemplating the best position for a shoulder massage. He was pretty sure she wouldn't want to move, considering her earlier protestations.

"Among other things," she sighed as she felt Clark's knees on either side of her. There was a moment of hesitation, one that resulted, she noted, in Clark deciding not to rest his weight on her, before he brushed her hair off her shoulders. She sighed, almost inaudibly, at the way his confidence seemed to be warring with his shyness and insecurities.

"So," he said in a soft voice, his hands tentatively tracing her shoulders and upper back, "where exactly are you sore?"

His hands continued to roam her tank top laden shoulders, applying more pressure as he waited for her to respond. Her only answer was an exhaling breath as she felt all the tension leave her body, only to be replaced with something else entirely. A soft moan escaped her, a feeling of complete and utter bliss coming over her as Clark continued to work his magic.

Clark listened as Lois agreed with his ministrations, her soft voice urging him on as he became more and more aware of the direction this all was going. His hands branched out from her shoulders down her spread out arms, meeting her hands and covering them as he leaned down against her and put his mouth close to her ear. "You still awake?" he asked, kissing her softly.

"Mmm," she mumbled. "What if I'm not?"

"Well…" he started, not expecting her question and thrown off by her asking. "Then I go into the living room and sleep on the couch."

"And if I _am_ still awake?"

"Then I do this," he told her before lowering his head and kissing the juncture of her neck and shoulder. "And this," he continued as he traced the shell of her ear with his tongue, causing her to moan in such a deeply satisfying voice that he almost lost control.

Lois soon enough began to squirm, just enough to cause Clark to sit up so she could turn around to face him. They shared a smile before he leaned in to kiss her, their tongues immediately coming in contact as the encounter heated up. Her hands now free, Lois moved them around his waist and to his back, grabbing handfuls of his shirt as they roamed and met with the bare skin of his abdomen.

Her touch caused him to break their kiss as he pulled back, his breathing heavy. She still had the tails of his dress shirt in her grasp, and the mere thought gave him the chills and made him want to just rip it off himself. But before he could make another move, Lois pushed him back onto his knees. She followed, bringing herself up off the bed and looking at him with a deep combination of love and lust before kissing him in a way she'd never kissed him before.

Lois broke the kiss, staring at him with a wanton need as her hands deftly reached for the buttons of his shirt, starting at the bottom and working their way to the top as his own hands found the hem of her tank top and reached past it to find her bare skin to pull her closer.

The buttons of his shirt undone, Lois pushed it off his shoulders as she smiled against his lips. Clark's hands continued their ascent on her bare skin, taking her shirt with him until she lifted her arms to remove it completely. They came back together immediately, Clark's hands settling on Lois's hips.

Her hands fell on his belt buckle, intent on undoing it, but she stopped as he began to kiss her throat as he pulled her closer than she thought was possible. She let out a moan, her head falling back as she spoke in a voice that sounded nothing like her own voice. "Why haven't we ever done this before?"

"Mmm," Clark moaned against her skin. "Two reasons."

Lois's hands renewed their effort on his belt, loosening it and opening it. "Neither of which are a concern right now, so…"

Clark drew back abruptly, coming back to himself and looking at Lois with disappointment. "But Hannah's—"

"Sound asleep in her room," she finished for him, knowing and understanding the cause of his nervousness. "We have the monitor if she wakes up."

He nodded wordlessly, a smile adorning his face as he accepted her pacification. As much as his body wanted her, he was also very aware that his heart wanted her just as much. He leaned in and rested his forehead against hers, hoping he hadn't entirely killed the mood. He had, after all, started it. He intended on finishing it.

His hand cupped her cheek and started dropping kisses on her mouth and throat in an effort to rebuild the heat that had been between them earlier. Lois quickly went back to his pants, talking against his lips as a thought escaped unfiltered. "And anyway, how do you think couples manage to have more than one child?"

A moment passed in which Lois unzipped Clark's pants before she looked at him and froze. "What?" Clark asked, unsure as to what caused her sudden apprehension.

"Clark, I'm not…" she searched for the right words, upset at herself for letting them get in this situation in the first place. She knew it was a possibility, of course, but she had chosen not to do anything about it up until this point.

"What is it, Lois? Just tell me."

"I'm not on birth control."

"Oh."

"Oh? That's it? 'Oh'?"

He laughed, kissing her and making her wonder why he was still in such high spirits when she just killed the moment.

"Bedside table. Top drawer."

Lois turned and looked at the table then turned back to Clark, not quite sure what he was getting at.

"It's presumptuous, I know. But Boy Scouts are always prepared."

Lois crawled over to the table and lay down on the bed as she opened the drawer and looked inside. Sure enough, Clark was prepared enough for both of them. She rolled over so she was facing him and held up the box of condoms she found in the drawer. "Presumptuous? That's an understatement."

Clark joined her on the other end of the bed and leaned in. "Maybe, but my foresight is saving us both from going to bed frustrated tonight." He kissed her on the cheek, lingering for a long second before finding her eyes again.

"Your foresight?" Her voice, despite her intentions, sounded annoyed. On the contrary, she was quite impressed with his preparedness and confidence that they would actually get to the point that the condoms would be useful.

"You aren't mad, are you?"

Lois pretended to be for a moment, turning away just long enough to see disappointment in Clark's face out of the corner of her eye.

Clark took her face in his hand, turning her back to face him. "I don't want you to think this is some scheme just to get you into bed. This isn't about that." He leaned in closer to her, his eyes never leaving hers as they implored her to believe him.

Choosing not to put any distance between them but instead draw him closer, Lois asked, "Then what exactly is it about?" She struggled to keep the smile off her face, as she already knew and understood his intentions.

"It's about loving you and wanting to be a part of your life in every way possible and praying to God that you want the same." His voice was low and nervous, the words slightly rushed as he tried to make her understand exactly how he felt. "And it's about knowing that our lives are crazy and hectic and not wanting anything to stand in our way when we finally have the opportunity to take this step together because I want it to be perfect."

Feeling like she'd made him suffer enough, and wanting to get back to the matter at hand, she smiled as she put her hands around his neck and started to weave her fingers through his hair. She sent a silent message to him by letting her hands trail down his back, pulling him on top of her completely as they moved further south. The feel of his body of top of hers taking over, she reached up and cupped his chin, bringing their lips within centimeters of each other.

"It already is, Clark."


	12. Chapter 12: Lois and Clark's Guidelines

**Chapter 12: Lois and Clark's Guidelines for Workplace Relationships**

Lois's internal clock kicked in the next morning and she found herself staring into Clark's face, his eyes closed and his face relaxed save a slight smile crossing his lips. She lifted her hand, intent on brushing it across his cheek, before changing her mind at the last second in fear of waking him up. He really was adorable when he slept, she thought.

She instead snuggled in closer to him, burrowing her head into his shoulder, wondering if it was too much to hope for that she could fall back asleep. But even as she did so, she felt Clark's arms tighten around her waist, pulling her flush against him and verifying that she was _not_ going back to sleep. Lois pulled her head back as he opened his eyes, full of sleep and happiness.

"I'm sorry I woke you," she told him softly, now brushing the hand across his cheek that she restrained earlier.

"Mm, it's okay," he said as he leaned into her touch. "I was sort of awake already; I just hadn't opened my eyes yet."

Lois wrapped her arm around his neck, rolling them so that his weight was on top of her as he leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers. "Should I even bother asking what time it is?" she asked between kisses.

"No," he breathed as his lips found the column of her throat. "Just accept that it's still early and we're going to be sleep deprived today."

Clark leaned up and looked at her then, a slightly dorky grin that she shouldn't love as much as she did, and she couldn't help but tease him. "Well, if someone would have let me sleep last night…"

"Uh huh, Lane. You have a fair share of the blame, too. I seem to recall someone deciding a few short hours ago that we needed to take a shower—together."

"Well, I—" Her intended retort was lost on his lips as she stared up at Clark, who had a look of complete innocence on his face but was doing things to her with the rest of his body that made her lose all coherent thought.

"That's what I thought," he laughed, before kissing her again. One kiss turned into two, and before he knew it, their kisses had turned into a heated melding of their bodies.

That is, until Hannah made it known she was awake.

The sound of crying over the baby monitor made Clark stop immediately, his head dropping to the pillow close to Lois's ear as he exhaled deeply. He felt, rather than heard, Lois's laughter in response as she ran her hands down his back in an effort to comfort him.

"It was bound to happen sooner or later," she whispered in his ear.

"I would have preferred later," he groaned, moving off her and starting to get up off the bed.

Lois stopped him as she reached for her tank top and shorts. "Let me," she told him. "Calm yourself down and I'll be back in a few minutes."

As much as he wanted to protest, Clark simply fell back onto the bed as he watched her leave the room and start to talk to Hannah as he entered the baby's room. He listened over the monitor as his daughter's cries subsided in reaction to Lois's attention, marveling once again at how wonderful his life has turned out in the face of everything that has happened.

He would be the first to admit that his first meeting with Lois was not one for the story books. She had, in fact, tried to shake him off as her partner and it had taken him standing up for himself and his credentials—along with some sweet-talking by Perry—to even get her to have a civil conversation with him. By the end of the day though, he knew all he needed to know.

For some reason, finding out she was a mother made all the difference in the world to him. It wasn't because he had mommy issues or anything weird like that. Instead, he remembered listening to her tell him about how she was able to understand her father's need to protect his daughters more once she became a mother herself. In that conversation, he discovered that while this woman was tough as nails and never let anyone work her over, she did so out of an overwhelming need to protect her son.

And it wasn't until he learned that he was a father himself that he fully understood what _she_ meant.

Clark was brought out of his thoughts as Lois re-entered his room, cradling Hannah in one hand and holding a bottle in the other. "Okay Daddy," she smiled as she walked over to his side of the bed. "I changed her and put some clean clothes on her, so now you get to feed her."

He sat up and took Hannah, holding her in all the right places as he fed her the bottle. His daughter, who was now almost six months old, had almost a full head of black hair and was smiling more and more as the days moved on. She was also starting to make unintelligible noises, which Clark knew meant she would be talking soon.

Lois got into the bed next to him, snuggling up close and watching as he fed Hannah. "She'll be holding her own bottle before you know it," she said, almost to herself but gaining Clark's attention as the words fell out of her mouth.

"I could have gone without hearing that, Lois."

"What? I was just making an observation."

Clark shifted his glance from Lois down to Hannah, watching as his daughter sucked on the bottle while almost holding his hand that was on the bottle. "I like feeding her. It's one of the few things I feel like I get to do with her," he said in a soft voice.

"Look at it this way, Smallville. So she learns to feed herself—so what? All it means is that there will be a handful of new experiences to replace it."

"Such as?" Clark asked, somewhat disbelieving of what she was saying, despite the fact that he knew she was speaking from experience.

Lois snuggled closer to him on the bed and smiled, recounting some of the milestones from DJ's first year. "For starters, she'll start sitting up on her own any day now. And if I know you, you'll play the airplane game with her when she starts eating solid foods." She thought for a moment, ticking off even more moments, but stopped short when a thought occurred to her. "Why are you so worrisome all of a sudden?"

"I don't know. I just…" Clark paused, not sure how to voice his concern. "How do you balance it all—work, a relationship, and a child—without dropping the ball somewhere?"

A nervous laugh escaped Lois as she sat up and looked at him more directly. "I should remind you that I'm not the best person to ask that question. I dropped the proverbial ball, remember?"

"Says who? David?"

Looking down in her lap, Lois couldn't find it in her to meet Clark's eyes. "I'm not proud of the fact that my marriage failed, Clark. Believe me, I tried to make it work. I couldn't give up my career though, and that's what David wanted me to do."

"I would never ask you to do that; it's too much of who you are."

Lois finally looked up. "What we need to do then is figure out a system, one that allows us to balance everything."

Clark nodded in agreement. He took the time to set Hannah's empty bottle on the bedside table and put her over his shoulder before he continued their conversation. "Are you suggesting we develop rules of some kind?"

Relaxing her demeanor, Lois lay down on the bed and faced the ceiling, her mind now functioning on all cylinders. "I prefer to call them guidelines. Rules sounds so…"

"Domineering," he finished for her, knowing exactly what she meant.

Hannah chose that moment to burp, bringing out a hearty laugh in both Lois and Clark. He brought Hannah off his shoulder and cleaned her chin with the rag and moved so he was laying next to Lois on the bed, Hannah pushing herself up with her arms as she rested on his bare chest.

"So," he continued, "Lois and Clark's guidelines for—what exactly do we call this?"

"Surviving the minefield known as life."

"I like it," he laughed. "What's first?"

"Well, we're looking for a balance, right? So we should probably have something like giving 100 percent to whatever demands our attention at that moment."

"And how exactly do we determine that? Can you honestly say that you're going to postpone a meeting with the mayor just because I request some alone time with you in the Archive Room?"

"As tempting as that sounds," she laughed, turning her head to see a matching expression in his eyes, "work has to come first in that situation. So, work is work. Everything else is pushed aside except in an emergency."

"Does that reciprocate when we're here, being parents?"

"What do you mean?"

"It's only fair, Lois. If I can't steal you away into the Archive Room for a make-out session, then it stands to reason that we don't bring work home with us."

Lois's expression became strained. "Ever?"

"No, not ever. But do you really want work and the kids to be the only things we ever talk about?"

Lois sighed and agreed with Clark, knowing that he had a point. The truth was that they were work partners who were dating and both had kids of their own. If they were going to survive together, they needed to pay attention to all aspects of their lives, which included putting away being a journalist in favor of being a mom and a girlfriend when the time came.

"This was much easier when it was just work and DJ I had to worry about," she said.

"I know," he whispered, noticing the questioning look on her face as he did so. "The day we met, when you took me with you to the daycare to see DJ? I remember thinking that this was a woman who had really compartmentalized her life. Work was work, and being a mother was in no way related to that."

"Except it is. You might not have realized that then, but—"

"I definitely do now."

"I'm not nearly as put together as you think I am, Clark," she said, turning toward him so she was lying on her side. "I think the only time I feel completely sure of myself is when I'm at work. The rest of the time I'm constantly questioning whether or not I'm doing the right thing."

"Ah, Lois," Clark breathed out, a hint of laughter in his voice. "Don't look now, but you're doing something _very_ right."

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Lois and Clark were barely in the door and at their desks on Monday before Perry poked his head into the bullpen and yelled, "Lane! Kent! Upstairs in my office in five minutes."

Exchanging curious glances and dropping off their belongings at their desks, they made their way to their editor's office. "Chief, you wanted to see us?" Lois asked as happily as she could at eight in the morning.

Perry motioned for them to enter his office and offered them a seat while he moved around to the front of his desk. Unlit cigar in his mouth, he leaned against the desk with his hands behind him. "I was hoping I could get an update on how your investigation is going." He looked at Clark. "Did you get anything new from that fundraiser Friday night?"

Clark glanced at Lois, knowing that she was going to be upset. Because of their new "guidelines," he had refused to talk about what happened when he was at the fundraiser. He knew it was only a matter of time before he would be forced to tell her, but he was really hoping it wouldn't be in front of an audience. "Other than the fact that Senator Vega is a major jack ass? No, I'm afraid I might have burned that particular bridge when he started bad-mouthing Lois."

Lois's head whipped in Clark's direction. "What? Why didn't you tell me?"

He opened his mouth to respond, but was cut off by Perry. "My guess is because he knew you would react exactly this way." Perry watched the expressions on their faces and the way their bodies were turned in toward each other from their respective chairs. "Tell me, Clark. Did you let on just how annoyed you were that he was talking down your girlfriend?"

"He's not—"

"We're just—"

They spoke simultaneously, each trying to deny Perry's accusation. He took in their almost identical expressions—eyes wide and mouths gaping—and couldn't help but laugh.

"Don't try to deny it, kids. The looks on your faces just now solidified any doubt I had."

Lois stood and began to pace around the office, not exactly sure how to proceed. What would Perry do if she admitted it? Frankly, she wasn't sure. "Listen, Perry. You may think you know what's going on, but you don't."

"And you seem to be under the impression that I'm reprimanding you. I'm not. But since you don't think I'm aware of what's really going on, please enlighten me."

Feeling more at ease, Lois came back to her chair and sat down. She shared a meaningful glance with Clark, who gave a very slight nod of his head, and made a definitive statement by taking his hand as she looked back up at her boss. "We _are_ together, but we're not just fooling around—"

"I never said you were."

"If I could, sir," Clark said, interjecting himself into the conversation for the first time. "We made a very conscious decision to keep our personal lives private. Not advertising our relationship outside of the office is a major part of that."

Perry nodded and walked silently back behind his seat to sit down. He took the cigar out of his mouth, held it in his hand, and leaned back in his chair before finally addressing the two reporters sitting in front of him. "Both of you can stop acting like this is the Spanish Inquisition. I admit I'm not the biggest fan of office romances, but I'm going to turn a blind eye on this one."

Lois couldn't believe her ears. It was an understatement that Perry didn't like office romances—he despised them. He was famous for putting walls and even floors between couples who were using the Planet as their personal make-out sites. For him to ignore his own rule was unheard of.

"Why, Perry?" she asked.

Perry stood again and returned to the front of the desk, an amused expression now on his face. "As far as I can tell, no one else knows that you're together outside of work. I have to take into consideration that you're being mature and professional about it. And there's always the fact that you've been happier the last few months than I've ever seen you, Lois. My guess is that Clark here has something to do with that."

Clark glanced at Lois, a small smile coming across his face. He was admittedly happy that Perry wasn't going to fire them or even break them up as partners, but if that hadn't been his intention in telling them he knew about their relationship, what was? "Sir, do you mind me asking what any of this has to do with our investigation?"

"Ah, yes," Perry remembered. "This is a sticky situation you two have yourselves in with this investigation. The key is to make sure Vega doesn't find out you're part of it, which is why I want this whole thing expedited."

Lois adjusted her posture, trying to understand what Perry was asking of them. "What exactly are you saying, Chief?"

"I'm giving you two weeks. I want some kind of major breakthrough in two weeks, or I want you to drop it. There are way too many variables in this for my liking, and I won't knowingly put my reporters at risk like this." Perry walked behind his desk, waving his hand in a manner that clearly said they were dismissed. Lois and Clark got up and walked to the door when they heard his voice once more. "Oh, and kids? Anything you could possibly need to research is in the digital database; you don't have to go to the Archive Room."

Lois looked to Clark with dread before they each nodded and walked out of the editor's office. As they walked toward the elevator, Clark was thankful that they had used as much discretion as they had while at the Daily Planet. _But apparently it wasn't enough if Perry found out,_ he thought.

Once they entered the empty elevator, he finally took Lois's hand and gave it a squeeze. When she met his eyes, he smiled and let out a deep breath. "That could have been catastrophic."

"Tell me about it. Perry has fired people for having office romances before. I'm frankly surprised he didn't break us up as partners."

"He still might after this investigation is over," Clark said, before noticing that they were approaching their floor. Releasing her hand, he looked to Lois. "Why didn't you tell Perry about your new source?"

"I will, but I want to make sure she has something solid for us first. And," she continued as they reached their desks, "I don't want to look like a fool if she turns out to be nothing but talk." Sitting down at her desk, Lois took her phone out of the middle drawer and checked her messages. When she finished listening to them a few minutes later, an aura of excitement overcame her. "I hope you don't have any plans for lunch, Smallville, because you get to meet my enigmatic new source."

"She contacted you again?" he asked, rolling his chair sideways.

"Says she has something that will 'make our heads spin.'"

Clark nodded silently, taking in this new development. He was still skeptical of this source Lois had stumbled upon. Sure, she'd given Lois some information that she couldn't have otherwise known unless she really knew what was going on, but it still sounded a little too convenient. And, he realized, Perry was right when he told them earlier that it was imperative that Senator Vega didn't know that he was being investigated. More important still was the necessity to keep Lois's name out of any information that _did_ get back to Vega and possibly Mannheim. While he hoped that Vega would not endanger the life of his grandson and his grandson's mother, he knew he couldn't say the same for Mannheim.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

"I'm going to run across the street for some decent coffee," Lois said some time later, feeling the need to move around from the nervousness she felt about just what Elizabeth had for them. "Want anything while I'm there?"

Clark shook his head and she made her way down to the ground floor, walking to the coffee shop that was almost directly across the street from the Daily Planet. As she waited for an opportunity to cross the street, she laughed to herself at a memory of Clark thinking she was crazy for walking to this place when the Planet served coffee free of charge. "It's not crazy to value your life," she had told him, and that had been the end of that.

Lois perused the board with the daily specials, contemplating what she wanted while she stood in line, when a voice whispered in her ear from behind her. "Don't turn around, Lois. It's Elizabeth."

"What are you doing here? I thought we were meeting for lunch," Lois responded, taking on the same hushed tone Elizabeth used. This situation was getting weirder and weirder, and it didn't do much for Lois's opinion of this person who had launched herself into this investigation without being asked.

"We were, but this coincidence makes things much less stickier. I think someone's on to me, Lois."

"Meaning?"

"Not ten minutes after I called you, a couple of Senator Vega's senior aides made a show of saying they were going to the same deli for lunch we were supposed to meet. It could be a coincidence, but we can't be too careful."

Lois felt Elizabeth slip something into her purse and started to turn around. "What's—"

"Don't look at it now," Elizabeth warned her. "And for the record, this meeting was by chance. I had intended to have the document sent to you by messenger, but then I saw you here and it made things a bit easier. Now there won't be a paper trail. I came to get coffee, just like you."

They fell into silence while the line continued to move, and Lois began to question the other woman's motives for helping her. "Why are you helping us, even when your life is possibly in danger?"

A short sigh, and Elizabeth simply replied, "You and I aren't that different, Lois. We both want to make the world a better place. We just go about it different ways."

And with that, a new lane opened at the coffee shop and Elizabeth moved forward to place her order, not once looking back in Lois's direction. Once she placed her own order, she pulled out her cell phone and quickly texted Clark.

To: Clark From: Lois 10:27 a.m. Meet me in Perry's office in 5 min. I'll explain then.

Lois paid for her drink and grabbed it once it was presented to her, mumbling a "thanks" to the barista as she hurried out of the shop. Whatever it was that Elizabeth placed in her purse was burning a hole in her pocket, and she was anxious to get to Perry's office so she could share it with both him and Clark. She had no idea what it could be, but she was guessing that it must be big if Elizabeth was now fearful for her life to the extent that she couldn't risk being seen sharing a meal with two reporters.

When she walked into Perry's office, she finally exhaled with relief in seeing both her editor and Clark were there waiting.

Perry, having a flair for the dramatic, jumped up from his seat when she entered. "What the hell is this about, Lane?"

"I'd like to know that myself," Clark interjected. "I thought you were just going across the street for some coffee."

"Lois, you're the only person I know who can go for coffee and get in trouble. I should have known that—"

"Chief! I didn't get in trouble. In fact, I might have that major break you were talking about this morning." She spoke with excitement, noting the stunned looks on both Perry's and Clark's faces as she told them what she had. She took a seat next to Clark and started digging in her purse, not exactly sure what Elizabeth had put in there at the coffee shop.

She quickly found the rolled up paper, held together with a rubber band, and held it out in front of her. The anticipation in the room was thick.

"Okay," she said, taking a deep breath. "I wasn't exactly forthcoming when we met this morning, Perry. I have a source, but I didn't tell you about her because everything she'd given me so far was circumstantial at best. She works in Senator Vega's office; her name is Elizabeth Brays. I had a message to meet her for lunch today, but when I went over for coffee she walked up behind me, put this in my purse, and told me not to look at it until I got back here."

"So why are you so sure this is that big break if you don't know what it is?" Clark asked.

"Because she was scared…for her life. Whatever this is, she thought it was important enough for us to see it and she was willing to go out of her way to make sure we got it."

"But why not wait until we met for lunch today?" Clark continued.

"She's under the impression that someone knows she's talking to reporters. She's not certain if they know—let alone if they know _who_ she's talking to, but she's being cautious. She was just going to stand us up today, but then she saw me at the coffee shop and knew she could get us the information this way."

"Enough already," Perry insisted, his hands resting on his desk as he leaned over it. "Unroll that damn piece of paper and let's see if I have to set you on this story exclusively."

Lois took the rubber band off the oversized piece of paper and unrolled it, finding a few other smaller pieces within it as she did. She set them aside and focused her attention on the larger piece. She scanned it quickly, the blue lines intertwining on the white paper to form an intricate diagram. "Clark," she breathed upon realizing what they had in their possession.

Clark, who had been looking at the smaller pieces of paper they found, turned his attention to Lois. He took a look at the paper and gasped, the full effect of what was in front of them taking shape. "Is that what I think it is?"

"If you think it appears to be a blueprint for a BG-80 Toastmaster, then it's exactly what you think it is."

Perry stormed out from behind his desk, adamant on getting a good look at this major break. "Care to enlighten your dear editor?"

"The Toastmaster is a military-grade assault weapon. It's a newer version of the BG-40, which was originally designed by John Henry Irons when he worked for AmerTek Industries in Washington, D.C."

"Okay, so how does something like that end up in Senator Vega's possession, let alone available to a junior-level aide like Elizabeth Brays?"

"Well," Clark said, holding up the other papers, "according to these, there are supposed to be some shipments coming in the next few days. I'm confused by one thing, though," he said, shuffling through the papers. "Who's 'Ugly'?"

"Mannheim's nickname," Lois informed him.

Clark nodded, understanding covering his features as he realized the depth of their discovery. Perry, on the other hand, didn't waste any time. "I'm dumping off all your other assignments. I want you both on this non-stop until we have a Pulitzer Prize-winning article above the fold." He took his cigar and waved it back and forth between Lois and Clark. Whatever you do, always make sure that you know where the other is at all times. And if you go somewhere together, I want to know about it."

"Yes, Chief," they said simultaneously.

"Now get out of here. I'm sure you have plenty of phone calls to make."

Lois and Clark exited Perry's office and immediately started delegating. "Take this and go see Irons," Lois told Clark as she handed over the blueprint. "See if there's anything at all that he can tell you that would help us out."

"What are you going to do?"

"Surf the Internet. I'm curious as to why Senator Vega has this lying around his office."

With them alone in the elevator, Lois arched up and kissed Clark, overwhelmed by the happiness she felt at having a major break on their story.

"What happened to the guidelines?" he asked as she pulled away and straightened herself as the elevator doors opened.

"On hold until further notice," she told him, smiling back at him as she exited the elevator. "Plus, if you're going to break the rules, you might as well do it right."


End file.
